Tales of Symphonia: Wonder Edition
by Digi-Dolphin
Summary: It's a tale known all too well, told in many ways. However, what if there had been an additional companion? One who isn't that likely to take to journeying for world regeneration? What would it have been like... if the Wonder Chef did more than just hide?
1. Meeting and First Battle Together

A/N: A certain lurker requested this be posted here so it could be subscribed to. Um, yeah. So I know that basically telling the story of the game has been done a hundred times over, but when I started this, it was more of a personal pet project, a retelling of the game to include my favorite little chef in the adventure. It was just a personal amusement. then I noticed the Chefs of Symphonia fan group on deviantart was seriously lacking in some good WC stuff -mostly old art and OC chefs- so I decided to post my lil project there to give them something new. Somehow, it got attention from people here. So while I'm still working on finishing up other fics, here's my pet project for you to nibble on. For those who know of my other Wonder Chef centered stuff, there are major differences here.

First of all; no Caleb. He doesn't exist here. Secondly, Adam has a different personality, no nickname, and some other personal changes that you'll see as the chapters are added. Third, this is going to be my first foray into a kind of boyxboy romancing, soooo yeah. Should be light, but we'll see how that goes. Also, the story's POV bounces around, so each character will have a shot at relaying the adventure through their perspectives, although the bulk of the story focuses on two particular characters, the Wonder Chef being one, obviously.

And yes, a LOT of dialogue comes right from the game; since it was a personal project, i didn't feel the need to create whole new words in their mouths. The game script was just fine as is, though I did expand and paraphrase wherever I felt like it. What you see is what you get, so if it's not your cup of tea, feel free to read one of the many other retellings on the site. There are a lot of very good ones that I like reading too, though I'm not sure if any of them are actually finished.

Since I started this fic with the intention of getting the Wonder Chef to join the party, I started straight from his first appearance, bypassing an hour or so of the initial part of the game and storyline. Enjoy.

* * *

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

Racing through the Triet Oasis marketplace wasn't really what he'd thought he'd be doing today. Then again, being out _anywhere_ in Sylvarant hadn't been high on his schedule list, and he had expected it to be set to around 'when Hel freezes over'. But no, here he was, a slightly smaller than average -and those were his own words- seventeen-year-old boy darting over the sand and holding his chef's hat down on short blonde hair, attempting to escape his travel companions.

If he had to look at one more piece of beef jerky...

"Wonder Chef! Slow down! We have to finish going over the itinerary!" one of the cooks trailing after him yelled in a panicked voice. Big, burly, clothed in the traditional whites of a sous chef's clothes with a red neckerchief, the first of his three guards looked more like a bouncing ball than a man. His face was distorted and red from running, sweat pouring down like tiny rivers, and large unsightly stains under his arms and across his groin area made the fleeing boy glad that he wasn't going to be near a kitchen anytime soon.

Hang on, where were the other two of his keepers? The boy frowned, narrowing one visible eye as he turned back forward and quickly scanned over the crowd before him. It wouldn't do to have his escape be foiled by running headlong into someone, after all. Now, where were the other two cooks?

Oh... there's one. The burly sous chef's twin brother, the line chef guard, had somehow managed to cram himself between several wooden crates, probably hoping to leap out and snatch the boy dashing along. Well, not today!

The blonde darted aside, making straight for the crates themselves. One, two, three! He leaped daintily onto each one, hoped the red cape on his back and the giant wood and metal fork strapped under it didn't hinder him, and flipped over the head of the line chef, crossing the gap of crates and touching down on the flat stone of the oasis town. He smiled back over his shoulder at the overweight man now struggling to get out of his hiding place.

"Wonder Chef! Enough of this! You have to follow the proper procedures! Your father...!" he cried out, oblivious to the various Triet natives giving him and the blonde dirty looks for causing a ruckus in the marketplace.

"Should have told me himself if he wanted me to listen!" the boy shouted back, hands cupped around his mouth. Grinning, he turned and darted off again, still aware that one more of his guards had yet to be evaded.

Some days ago, the oracle had appeared in Sylvarant, a brilliant flash of light that had nearly blinded the Wonder Chef when he first saw it, sitting on a rock on Hima's mountain peak and ignoring the ranting of a bearded entrepreneur attempting to start a business there. He'd fallen backwards with a yelp of surprise, scrambled back to his feet and blinked as the man behind him fell to his knees with a joyful cry. The oracle, the signal for the Chosen to begin her journey for world regeneration. The young chef frowned at the thought of some innocent person being sent off to die for no real reason, then winced at the ringing coming from his pocket.

He had ignored the man again -he was now calling out praises and thanks to the Goddess Martel- and dug out the gold disc in his pocket, the source of the ringing. Clicking it open, he rolled his eyes heavenward at the message he knew he'd be getting from it. _'Return to base. Next assignments will be in Tethe'alla.'_ He clapped it shut before it finished and pulled the Wonder Fork from its place against his back, lifting it into the air and teleporting to the secret base hidden within Hima's mines. Once there, he threw a fit, demanding to remain in Sylvarant so he could support the people there until the journey was through.

What was the point of going to the flourishing world when it was Sylvarant that needed him more?

"There you are!"

The blonde's thoughts had been enough of a distraction for the third guard, his dessert chef, to sneak up on him from another avenue and grab his arm. Startled, the boy spun on his heel to face the lankier man, overcompensated for the motion, and fell back, nearly yanking the man down with him. The dessert chef pulled on his arm, getting him back on his feet, and gave the younger chef a scolding look.

"You know better than to be seen in the open like this, Wonder Chef. Your duties are to hide and disguise, so that recipes may be taught to those who seek your knowledge." the lanky cook told him sternly, "Now, have you bought your ingredients? We're to leave for Tethe'alla immediately after you've done so."

The Wonder Chef yanked his arm free, scowling up at the older man. "I told you, I'm staying here!" he shot back, "There's no reason for me to be anywhere else but here in Sylvarant!" He would have said more, but there was a sudden uproar in the town. Cries of fear and panic filled the air, tension rippling through the marketplace, and suddenly people were scattering, racing for homes and places to hide. "What's going on?" the blonde murmured in alarm and concern, looking towards the town's entrance. There was only one way into the walled city, so whatever was causing this new ruckus had to be from there.

"Desians! Hide! Run!" someone yelled out in a panic, and the dessert chef gave a start, turning to flee in reflex. He hadn't been part of the Wonder Chef Family long, and still was skittish when any mentions of Desians or human ranches came up. This was the break that the younger chef needed. He darted forward, towards the source of the panic, and then threw himself behind several clay jars, peering out around them at the sight of a group of men and women dressed in red clothing, light armor and metal helms gleaming in the desert sun despite being lightly coated in dust and sand. Desians, half-elves and humans that controlled human ranches, places where people where dragged to at a steady rate for inhumane reasons, full of torture and misery and pain; what reason did they have to be all the way here in Triet? There was no nearby ranch, and the closest was in the same region as Iselia, whose prison stock came from transfers done by other Sylvaranti ranches.

He could only pick up brief bits of conversation, not enough to understand what was going on, but seeing them start to drift apart gave him some cause for alarm. No sense being around for them to catch. The Wonder Chef pulled the fork from his back and held it before himself, focusing on the mental image of the second floor of the Mirage inn. It was on the other side of the cluster of Desians headed his way, and it was where he'd planned on hiding in wait for the Chosen's group. After all, even the Chosen had to sleep sometime, right?

A burst of white smoke later, there wasn't a trace of him to be seen when the Desians passed by the clay jars.

* * *

Lloyd was ten kinds of pissed that these Desians just couldn't leave him alone. Wanted posters? _Really?_ What was so special about his Exsphere that had them stalking after him all the way out here to the desert? On top of that, he was stuck hiding behind Noishe's bulky form with Genis until the cluster broke up and went their separate ways. Finally! A chance to breathe!

"This is serious. We gotta hurry and find Colette!" the silver-haired boy behind him muttered. Lloyd froze in place and turned to glare at his friend.

"I thought we were looking for her to protect **her**, not save _us_!" he accused. Genis merely threw up his hands in exasperation.

"Not gonna be able to do much protecting of her if we get caught because of you, Lloyd." he countered dryly, and that was true. Unable to protest that, Lloyd just sighed harshly and moved back forward, glancing around the area first to be sure it was clear, then darting over to the billboard where the wanted poster had been pinned up by the lead Desian. Genis joined him shortly after and the two of them spent a few moments studying the crudely drawn image on the paper. The brunet grimaced at the depiction.

"Am I really that ugly?" he asked of his companion, dreading the answer that would come. He'd always considered himself rather well off in looks, not dashingly handsome or anything but at least not horrible enough to shatter mirrors, like that poster seemed to indicate. Genis looked like he was trying to hold back a barrage of snickering, shaking his head.

"That's good, actually. They'll never find you with **that **for comparison." he replied and laughed when Lloyd's crestfallen expression told him that that wasn't the response he was hoping for. "Relax, Lloyd! The poster is hideous, and you're not. No way is anyone gonna think you're the guy in the picture."

Lloyd felt somewhat reassured by that. Something still told him he was being made fun of, but he couldn't figure out how. Shrugging his shoulders to discard the thought, he gave a small sigh. "Well, as long as that's okay, let's get to searching around here for signs of Colette. Somebody's bound to have seen her, right?" Genis nodded in agreement, but grabbed him by the ribbons of white fabric that hung from the collar of his red jacket, holding him back before he could run off. "What?" he complained to the shorter boy.

"We just got here from the desert. I don't know about you, Lloyd, but I'm hot, thirsty, hungry, and seriously need to make sure there's not sand in places there shouldn't be." Genis pointed out grouchily and pointed towards the nearby door that led into the Mirage inn, "Let's check in and get ourselves some rest. Just a little bit, and then we can spend all day looking for Colette and the others, okay?"

Lloyd relented a bit, agreeing to the food and water, not so much to the checking for sand. Then again, he was covered from neck to toe in dwarven-crafted clothes, sturdy red jacket and gloves with matching boots, tucked into thick black pants and all held together with both brown leather belts to support the sheaths of his twin swords and leather suspenders holding up his pants. It would have been pretty hard for sand to get past all those layers. Genis, in his light blue and white shorts, shoes, and vest with black undershirt, was less lucky. His pale skin had reddened from sun exposure and his gray eyes looked cloudy from fatigue.

Another sigh and the older boy led the way into the inn, heading down the steps to the door at a steady pace. Once he opened it, Genis ran right in, rushing past Lloyd in a race to whatever passed for the dining room to start pleading for water. He didn't get that far.

Lloyd flinched as Genis impacted someone that had been on their way out of the same dining area, the two of them falling back onto their respective rumps with a collective yelp of pain and surprise. Rolling his eyes, he hurried over to pull Genis to his feet, glancing him over quickly for any sign of injury before looking to the person he'd run into.

He blinked, startled, at the immediate sight of blonde hair, part of which had been swept aside to cover the left eye. Blonde hair, in Lloyd's mind, meant Colette, so that's what he blurted out before the rest of his brain could point out that Colette would not be wearing weird green and white traveling clothes and a red cape.

"Colette?"

The guy -Lloyd only just now discovered the person Genis knocked over was a boy because of the way he sounded when he groaned in pain- stopped rubbing at his stomach and looked up at him in confusion. Blue eyes. He had blue eyes, just like Colette, but where Colette had eyes that were bright like a springtime sky, this guy had them as deep as the sapphires Lloyd's dad, Dirk, worked with at the forge. They were oddly pretty and Lloyd found himself weirdly fascinated by that thought.

* * *

Genis looked at his best friend with equal parts exasperation and confusion. Had he been out in the sun so long that he was confusing random strangers for Colette now? He gave the blonde on the floor a quick appraisal. Well, maybe it wasn't too farfetched. Same color hair, similar colored eyes -eye, seeing as the other was covered up-, so there was a little cause for confusion there. But the clothes had to give some sign that this definitely wasn't Colette.

For one thing, Colette wore the white clothes of the Chosen, making her stand out in a crowd. She was kind of on the short side, but that was a given since she was a girl and a little younger than Lloyd. This guy was shorter than Lloyd -considering where Genis collided on him as compared to when he ran into the brunet- but not short enough to be Colette. His hair was short, Colette's was long. He was wearing a green shirt with shiny brass buttons and long white sleeves ending in green and gold trimmed cuffs, a brown leather belt with brass buckle, green pants and sturdy brown shoes with a red cape. A giant gag fork of some kind was strapped to his back under the cape, part of its harness crossing over the front of the guy's shirt, faded leather a clue to its age.

How the heck could Lloyd confuse this weird guy with Colette? He wasn't **that** stupid was he?

And for that matter, why was he still staring at the guy?

"Excuse me?" the guy returned at last, an incredulous tone in his voice, "I think you have the wrong person. I'm..." He stopped, one hand clapping over his mouth as his eyes widened.

"Something wrong?" Genis asked, growing a little suspicious of the stranger's behavior. The other boy held his pose for a moment longer, then slowly lowered his hand, looking a bit sheepish.

"Um, well, actually, I'm not sure what to do in this situation." he replied, and silently accepted Lloyd's offer to help him stand up. Genis caught sight of a flattened chef's hat once the other boy was on his feet and picked it up, noting its trim was the same green and gold as his shirt.

"You don't? Why? You're just saying who you are, right?" Lloyd questioned, confused by the other boy's words. The blonde laughed, and it might have sounded pleasant if it hadn't been tainted with nervousness.

"That's the problem. I'm not really supposed to say who I am unless you find me, and my name..." the boy paused again, and Genis caught a brief glimmer of mixed emotions before they vanished, too fast for Lloyd to catch. "Well, my name's not important in my job." the boy finally finished wryly.

"That's stupid." the half-elf butted in derisively, "Of course your name's _important_. It's your **name**; what have people been calling you since you were born? 'Hey, You'?" He held up the battered hat. "By the way, you dropped this." The blonde gave a dismayed little cry as he took it back and spent a moment gazing at the dirtied white sadly before sighing and stuffing it into a travel pack he had on hand. "Are you some kind of traveling cook?" Genis asked, making his assumption based on the clues he'd gathered. He raised an eyebrow when the blonde gave him an incredulous look.

* * *

A traveling cook? _Really?_ Had no one in Sylvarant made any mention of the legends of the Wonder Chef? He felt a bit hurt; he didn't even qualify as an old wives' tale anymore. Part of him wanted to cry for a bit. He quickly shook it off.

"Um, not really." he replied slowly, then sighed, shaking his head. Well, he'd already made a mess of things, no point trying to salvage this fiasco. "I'm the mysterious gourmet, the Wonder Chef!" he finally declared, lifting his hand into the air. He blinked a few times -oh, that's right, he'd put the Wonder Fork back into its harness- and then brought it down to cover his eyes as he flushed in embarrassment. "Oh Goddess, I screwed that up royally." he muttered as the brunet and silver-haired kid both started laughing.

"What was _that_ supposed to do?" the shorter kid managed to get out between snorts of laughter, "Come on, really? That's how you introduce yourself? That's so lame!"

The young chef's face burned hotter, turning more red as the laughter went on. Maybe going to Tethe'alla wasn't such a bad idea after all. He stiffened when he felt a hand on his shoulder and brought his own down, blinking at the red-clothed teen that smiled at him, eyes still laughing merrily.

"Let's try that again, okay?" he suggested, "I'm Lloyd Irving, this is my best friend, Genis Sage, and you are...?"

The Wonder Chef blinked again, mouth agape at the silent invitation to say his name. His name; he could give them his name and not his title. They could be the only two people in both worlds, outside of the Family, to know his real name. It was dangerous, it was risky, it could cost him so much later on.

Oh, to Hel with it. He was going to die anyway, for what he was planning on doing. He smiled slowly, encouraged by Lloyd's friendly grin and outstretched hand, then reached back to grasp it in a handshake.

"Adam." he returned warmly, "My name's Adam Voraci. It's nice to meet you."

.

It didn't take long for them to all be sitting at the same table, talking over cups of cool water and mostly empty plates of food, dishes that Adam had cooked up with a smile. He learned quite a bit from the two boys; how they were from Iselia, how their friend Colette had gone on the journey of world regeneration because she was the Chosen of Mana, how they had been ousted from their village for reasons they didn't really want to talk about, and how they were now looking for Colette to join her journey. Adam listened intently, eyes wide with awe and eager to know more about them. Until he became the new Wonder Chef, he'd never really spent much time outside of the secret base where the Wonder Chef Family resided.

There had been a time when he was able to go out and make friends, but then that incident occurred and he never was able to leave again...

He dismissed the fledgling memory before it could fully surface and resumed listening to the two boys. They finished by saying they needed to keep out of sight of the Desians in Triet as they searched for Colette, and Adam's interest grew.

"I saw them myself just a while ago. That's why I was hiding in here." he told them. He considered his next words, then nodded, making his decision then and there. "If you're looking for the Chosen, is it all right that I join you?" he asked. Lloyd and Genis both looked at one another in surprise, then at him.

"It'll be dangerous." Genis pointed out.

"That's fine." Adam replied, shaking his head. They were going to try to dissuade him. How kind, but very much unnecessary.

"There's gonna be Desians, probably. And monsters. And lots of fighting." Lloyd added, concerned expression on his face, "Can a Wonder Chef fight?" Adam smiled, tilting his head as he rested it on one hand.

"It depends on what kind of fighting you mean. Cooking battles are a cakewalk for me. If you mean like physically beating something with a weapon..." he trailed off at the boys' unified nodding, "Ah. Well, I trained a little bit with that kind of fighting." He couldn't hold back the wince at remembering being severely scolded for beating a wooden dummy with a perfectly good frying pan. "I'm not all that great at it, but I'm pretty sure I can hold my own in a battle. If nothing else, I can throw food at monsters."

He couldn't help but laugh at Lloyd's startled expression. "I'm the Wonder Chef; I have recipes for all kinds of food, from dishes that can heal and restore mana or cure ailments, to ones that can inflict status effects or affect my surroundings." he explained with a smile, "It makes me valuable, wherever I am. So, may I join you in looking for the Chosen and then join your group in the journey?"

"You'll have to ask Professor Sage, once we find them." Lloyd pointed out uncertainly, then added in a firmer tone, "And her name is Colette; stop calling her 'Chosen'. I know that's her title and everything, but she's still a person!" Adam lifted his hands, face set into a serious expression.

"I know. I know how that is. It's not fun being known only for your title." he agreed wryly. He quickly replaced it with a smile once he noticed both boys were looking at him strangely. "Ah, never mind. So, are we ready to go out and look for Colette and your other friends?"

Genis nodded in answer to Lloyd's silent question, the brunet looking at him to check on his friend. "Yeah, we're good to go." Lloyd agreed cheerfully, "We're looking for a blonde girl, that's Colette. She'll be with Genis's sister, Professor Raine Sage. She's our teacher in Iselia." He scowled suddenly. "There's also that stuck-up mercenary with them. His name's Kratos. He's the one who didn't want us coming along, but I'll show him that I **can** protect Colette!"

"Yeah, right after we ask them for help with the Desians chasing us." Genis piped in with a bark of a laugh. Lloyd didn't look amused. Neither did Adam. At hearing the name of Kratos, he paled, eyes widening as his mind raced. What were the odds that the Kratos Lloyd was talking about was the Seraph that was under Yggdrasill's orders? Pretty high, if he was in the Chosen's group.

Which meant that Adam couldn't warn Colette about what was going to happen, couldn't tell her about Cruxis and Tethe'alla and the need to fight against the angels. He'd lost this fight before he even started. He forced a smile before either of his new companions could notice and nodded.

"All right. Let's get going then." he agreed and headed out of the inn with them.

.

They spent much of the day searching the oasis town for information, talking to shopkeepers to see if any of them had seen the Chosen. One man eagerly regaled them with the story of how his house had been blessed by her passing, pointing out the distinctly shaped hole in his wall that resembled a petite girl. Adam stared at it and looked to Lloyd for an explanation.

"She's kind of a klutz." the brunet remarked with a sheepish laugh.

They also had to dodge the patrolling Desians and Adam's ditched chef guards. When given looks about that last bit, he made up a story about how they wanted him to start his travels on the other side of Sylvarant when he wanted to start on this side. Genis didn't look too convinced, but Lloyd happily offered to help shield him if they saw any wandering cooks, which Adam was all too grateful for.

* * *

Lloyd thought the fortune teller was kind of a rip-off. She wanted a hundred gald before she'd tell where Colette was -and he kind of had to borrow the money from their new friend, Adam, who didn't seem to mind so he supposed it all worked out- and then it turned out she didn't even have to 'divine' it or whatever. She knew because that's where Kratos said they were going, where being the Triet Ruins.

"So they ended up already being gone by the time we got here." Genis sighed with a shake of his head, "Just great. Now we have to go out into that desert again and follow them." The three of them leaned against one of the wooden buildings in the marketplace, taking advantage of the shade. "We don't even have enough gald to stock up on water for the trip out!" Lloyd blinked at the shorter boy before looking over at blonde chef on his other side. He was already shaking his head.

"Sorry, Lloyd. I spent most of my money on ingredients and my own supply of water. If we split what I have, it won't last us more than a couple of days." he pointed out, "And how long would it take us to get to the ruins?"

"Three to four days. We'd be severely dehydrated by the time we reached the ruins, and if we get attacked by monsters on the way..." Genis added worriedly. No one said anything more. They all knew the most likely end to that train of thought.

Lloyd lifted his head in sudden thought. "Hey, what if we went outside the city and just picked on monsters for a bit?" he suggested, "That billboard had some posts for bounties, right? If we filled out a few requests, we could earn enough gald to stock up on water and then find Colette." Both Adam and Genis brightened at the idea, and Lloyd felt much better about the situation now that they had kind of a plan in place. "There were even some bandits out there. We could sort of... you know..."

"Rob the robbers?" Adam filled in with a small smirk, "I don't suppose there'd be any harm. After all, that money didn't belong to them in the first place."

So now they had something to do to get more supplies. Eager to get started, Lloyd led the way back to the town's entrance, flanked by Genis and Adam. They hadn't even reached the open gate when a voice yelled out at them.

_"Wait!"_

They turned collectively, curious as to who it was that called them, then had a collective look of dread spread over their faces as a small party of Desians walked towards them. The leader pointed right at the brunet. "You're Lloyd Irving, aren't you? You look just like the wanted poster!" he demanded and Lloyd just groaned under his breath. He really didn't want to have to deal with this.

"I'm not **that** ugly!" he snapped back irritably, waving a hand at Genis who had opened his mouth to say something, "So what the hell do you want?"

"Get him!" the Desian ordered, sending his two comrades rushing forward with whips in hand. He himself hefted up a longbow, readying it with arrows.

"Ah, dammit! Adam, Genis, take care of the guys with whips!" Lloyd barked, dashing around to deal with the bow-wielding Desian. Now to see if they could get out of this one in one piece.

* * *

Adam yelped in surprise at the orders, one hand diving into his travel pack before throwing it aside, chosen weapon in hand. "Okay, Adam! Time to show what you can do!" Genis declared as he started flipping his kendama, a circle of light blossoming at his feet. Okay, so the kid could use magic. That meant...

The Wonder Chef winced as he darted forward, frying pan in hand. That meant he'd have to keep _both_ whipmasters busy until the spell was done. Luckily, him running up to one of the Desians with a cooking implement in hand startled them enough for him to get in one good hit. Being slammed upside the head by a frying pan could not be a pleasant experience. The Desian went down, stunned, and Adam spun to bat aside the whip coming at him from the other one.

"Little runt!" the second Desian snarled and Adam blinked even as he dodged another lashing, running up under the attack to get in close. That was a woman's voice; he was fighting a woman? No time to dwell on it, he jabbed the frying pan into her stomach hard. When she doubled over, he lifted it to bring down on her back. Enough to stun, not kill. Adam couldn't bring himself to do that. He hesitated, trying to decide where best to strike to cause minimal injury, and paid for it when his wrist was suddenly snagged by the first Desian's whip.

"Ack!" He was yanked backwards onto the sandstone just as the bow-carrying Desian fell under the onslaught of Lloyd's sword strikes, spilling blood over the ground. He flipped over, jerking back on the whip to throw his new 'partner' off balance.

_"Fireball!"_ Genis cried out, hurling several spheres of fire at the Desian holding Adam in place with her whip, "One more to go!" The stunned Desian was already trying to right herself, so Adam spun in place where he knelt, swinging the frying pan aside as he moved. Centrifugal force increased the power of the attack and the pan smashed right into the Desian's head, denting her helmet and sending her sprawling onto the ground, unconscious.

He found himself breathing hard as he lowered the pan, hand moving to rub gingerly at the injury on his wrist. Lloyd had moved to stand by him, reaching down to help him up. After a moment, he accepted the help and got to his feet as Genis scampered up to join them.

"Hey, that wasn't too bad! Kinda funny that you were using a frying pan, though. I thought for sure you'd use that giant fork of yours!" Lloyd remarked cheerfully. Adam didn't quite hear it all, eyes drawn to the corpses of the two Desians the brunet and Genis had dealt with. His face paled once the stench of blood and burnt flesh hit his nose and he quickly turned away, swaying slightly. "Hey! Whoa! Adam, you okay? Are you hurt?" Lloyd added in concern, his hands grabbing the chef by the shoulders to steady him, "Come on, they were easy to beat. You couldn't have gotten hurt too badly, right?"

"Don't let your guard down, Lloyd, talking like everything's just gonna fall at your feet." Genis remarked dryly, "He's okay, I was watching him. He might have a bruised wrist, but that'll be taken care of pretty easily." The brunet gave him a sour look.

"I'm not letting my guard down! They were pitiful to start with and the only person who looks like they're gonna fall at my feet is Adam!" he shot back. Adam lifted his free hand to press against his head, still gripping the frying pan in the other.

He was about to say something when he heard a strange sizzle in the air not too far from them. There was a split second where he lifted his head, eyes wide with alarm meeting Lloyd's puzzled look, and then pain just blasted through him, the sting and burn of electricity coursing through him and Lloyd. His hand opened reflexively as he opened his mouth to scream, the sound lodged in his throat. The frying pan fell to the ground, and shortly after so did Adam and Lloyd, collapsing onto the sandstone in an unconscious heap, with Genis's cry of shock the last sound either of them heard.


	2. Desian Base and Battle with Botta

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

Lloyd woke to the sound of voices nearby. His head throbbed, and whatever he was lying on was hard and uncomfortable. Carefully, he pushed himself upright and listened to the voices.

"...If so, I feel kinda sorry for that Lloyd kid." one of them remarked thoughtfully.

"Yeah. He can't possibly escape execution!" the other agreed. Lloyd snapped to full alertness. Execution? Where the hell was he for people to be putting him to death all of a sudden? He looked around, taking note of the flat metal walls surrounding him, very artificial and cold, and the metal bars that told him in no uncertain terms that this was a cell of sorts.

"What about the other one? The blonde kid? Isn't he...?" the first voice went on. Lloyd tilted his head, frowning as he tried to catch more of the conversation. Blonde kid... Adam? Had Adam been brought here as well?

"Huh, there weren't any orders in dealing with that one. Word is that his packs were full of food and cooking items, so he's probably a pretty decent cook." the second voice mused aloud, "If nothing else comes through on him we can put him to work in the kitchen in exchange for his life. Best we can do, since we can't really tell about his blood..."

The voices began to recede after that, and only the footsteps of a lone guard patrolling in front of the cells remained. Lloyd frowned, considering his situation after another brief check revealed that all his equipment had been stripped from him. The only thing left behind was the Sorcerer's Ring artifact that he'd been carrying around since he explored the Martel Temple with Colette and Professor Sage, Genis, and Kratos. That felt like so long ago it almost hurt.

"Well, time to get the heck out of here and find Adam." he muttered, slipping the ring onto his finger. It wouldn't do to have their new friend slaving away in some Desian base, cooking for a bunch of evil half-elves. "This thing worked pretty good at stunning monsters back then; maybe it'll work on people too." He hoped so. The guard was jingling, which meant keys were on him somewhere, which meant he needed to get the guy up close before he could do a stun and search.

He got up and headed for the bars, shaking them furiously. "Hey! Hey, you! Let me out of here! What's going on?" Lloyd yelled. The guard glared at him, and the brunet made faces, taunting him further.

"Shut up! Just settle down, you're not gonna be in there much longer anyway!" the guard shot back. Lloyd stuck his tongue out and turned, shaking his butt at him.

"Ha! What kind of guard are you? I can mess with your head all I want and you can't do a damn thing about it!" he teased, smiling widely as the guard fumed and started marching towards him with a whip in hand. He probably thought he could safely beat on him from the other side of the bars. Well, he thought wrong! Once the guard was close to the bars, Lloyd spun back around and lifted his fist to point at him, willing the Sorcerer's Ring to shoot off that little ball of fire. It hit the startled guard in the chest, flashing blue over his body for reasons Lloyd never bothered to question, and then the guy dropped like a sack of rocks.

"Cool! It _does_ work!" Lloyd exclaimed brightly and knelt down, reaching through the bars to search the guard's pockets and belt. The keys were on a ring tied to his waist, so he undid the knots quickly and then made for the door. He had to try several keys before he found the one that opened the door, then quickly dragged the stunned guard into the cell before locking it on him.

Now came the task of searching the other cells for Adam. The next one over had his equipment neatly put together with small tags. Kind of dumb to just put there, but then those Desians probably didn't think he'd get out of his cell and have the keys to the others. Quickly, Lloyd slipped on his things and shouldered his travel pack, making sure his swords were in easy access. The cell after that had Adam's stuff, giant fork propped against the wall, travel pack set beside it and still bulging with whatever he had stashed in there. He grabbed them both, stuffing them under one arm as he walked down the hall, peering into the other cells.

He finally found the blonde in a cell further down from his own, lying on his back on the hard metal bed with his right arm laying across his stomach, the same arm that had been tangled in the Desian's whip some time ago. Lloyd suddenly realized he had lost track of time; how much had passed since they were both knocked out in Triet? What about Genis? The voices hadn't mentioned him at all, so maybe he didn't get captured?

Either way, he found Adam, now he had to get him out. Lloyd opened the cell door and hurried inside, setting down the blonde's pack and fork before going over to check on him. Strange, he looked like he was just asleep, breathing evenly, almost peacefully. Puzzled, Lloyd reached out to pick up the other boy's hand, pushing back on the sleeve to get a better look at his wrist. It was bandaged, clean white fabric wrapped snugly around his injury and hiding it from sight. So the Desians did this? Why?

No time to really think on it. Lloyd prodded at the blonde's shoulder, urging him awake. "Hey, Adam, wake up. Come on, we gotta get outta here and find Genis!" he called. The chef winced before opening his eyes drowsily, looking up at Lloyd in confusion before drawing his gaze on his wrist, which the brunet still held in his hand. The same confusion remained. "Yeah, somebody bandaged that for you. You feeling okay?" Lloyd explained, tugging him to sitting position.

"Um, yes. I'm all right." Adam returned, but he sounded less than certain about it. He pulled his wrist free of Lloyd's grip and studied the bandage himself before shrugging it off and looking around, his gaze sharpening as he took in the sight of metal walls and strangely lit rooms. "Where are we?" he asked.

"A Desian base of some kind. Not really sure." Lloyd answered, getting up and grabbing his travel pack to hand off, "Get your stuff back on. We gotta escape." It didn't take long for him to be ready, and the two of them started running down the hall, looking for an exit. They burst through the doors at the end, coming to a halt as two footmen passing by stared at them in surprise, then immediately fell into combat stance, swords whipping out as they charged. "Not again!" Lloyd exclaimed in exasperation, whipping out his own twin blades and charging, "Adam!"

* * *

He hated it. Adam cringed at the idea of fighting again; he really didn't want to smell death again. But it was them or him and Lloyd, and he still needed to get to Colette, so the chef dug into his pack again and pulled out several small jars, searching for the right one. There! Small and glass, full of powdered red satay, perfect.

Lloyd was fast, swinging his swords about almost wildly to block incoming attacks and slash back. Both Desians and the brunet were picking up wounds, long cuts over limbs that were shallow and oozing, bright red blood staining their blades. Adam hung back, watching them carefully as he shoved the other jars back into his pack. This was going to be a bit expensive.

"Lloyd! Get back to me! I've got an idea!" he called out, pulling his arm back and gripping the jar. The brunet dashed back to his side, head lowered to move faster than the incoming Desians. Once clear, Adam hurled the jar at the footmen, smashing the container at their feet. An explosion of red powder flew up in billowing clouds, and both men screamed in agony, hands clawing at their eyes or open wounds as they staggered in place. "Go around them!" the chef told Lloyd, pushing the stunned boy into moving. They circled around the red haze and kept running, blinking their eyes rapidly as they watered.

"Wh-what the hell did you do?" Lloyd yelled back at him, raising a hand to rub at his eyes.

"Don't touch your eyes! Some of the powder might be on your clothes!" Adam snapped, digging into a pocket to pull out a clean white handkerchief. There was a door nearby and he pulled Lloyd to it, ignoring the soft sound it made as it slid open electronically and allowed them to enter. Once inside, he pressed the cloth to Lloyd's face, carefully wiping away tears and checking for any residue that might have flown back in their direction. "I threw a jar of red satay at them. It's very spicy and hot, and irritates the eyes. It also burns open wounds." he explained, blinking a few times himself. Everything looked so blurred through the tears. He dabbed at his own eyes, then shook his head. "I'm just glad you didn't get enough from the blast to be affected too."

"Ow, ow, ow. Maybe not, but cuts still hurt." Lloyd grumbled, pulling his gloves off after sheathing his swords, "Man, cooks are dangerous!"

"I'm the Wonder Chef, not your run-of-the-mill cook." Adam corrected in mock sternness as he took the red gloves to dust off any powder, "I'm more dangerous with ingredients in my hands than any weapon. Hm, they look pretty clean. Still, don't touch your face with them until they can be washed." He gave them back and wrinkled his nose at the smell of blood. "Ugh."

"I don't know who's scarier with food, you or Professor Sage." Lloyd chuckled, then hissed softly as he touched bare fingertips to one especially nasty gash high on his arm, "Hand me a couple of Gels. They should be in my pack." He turned a little to give Adam easier access to his bag. The chef reached in, searching around for the little packet that held an assorted number of colored Gels. He pulled it out, giving it a confused look that he then passed on to Lloyd. The brunet laughed. "The red ones are Apple Gels, they're good for injuries." he explained.

"Tch. My recipes are more than a match for them in healing." Adam retorted, but gave him a pair of the red candies before stuffing the packet back inside his bag and then turned to his own pack. "I can put together something fairly quickly to speed your healing, but we'll have to move even faster to escape before we're discovered. Those guards won't stay down for very long, even with all that satay covering them."

Most of his ingredients seemed to be intact. Adam bit his lower lip thoughtfully, scanning over his stock and searching his memory for a recipe that would be able to make use of what he had and still heal Lloyd's injuries. He couldn't actually cook, there were no appliances around for that and he couldn't just start a fire in here, so it had to be handmade. He was now out of red satay, so some of the more powerful dishes were out of the question. Sandwiches wouldn't provide enough healing, not unless Lloyd ate a dozen of them or more.

"Cabbage rolls are more mana restorative, and I don't have any fruits..." Adam muttered, and then jumped reflexively when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Whoa! You get jumpy a lot." Lloyd remarked in surprise, "Look, we don't have time for a snack, we should get going. The Gels took care of most of the cuts, but do you have anything to bandage the rest?" Adam looked up at him, then considered things carefully. He didn't usually carry bandages with him, since cooking always healed up any injuries he might pick up. Bandage, bandage...

"Oh! We can use this!" he realized, lifting his right arm to show the bandage on his wrist, "I don't actually need it; the whip just kind of rubbed my arm a little raw and I can deal with that." Unwrapping it carefully, he soon had a length of fabric that he then used to wrap a cut that stretched along Lloyd's side, a job that required the brunet to open his jacket to let him reach it. Adam tied it off and stepped back, frowning at the splotches of red that already stained the bandage. "We'd best get out of here soon; you're going to need better first aid than that." he muttered and noticed Lloyd looking up at something that held his attention, "Hm?" He turned to take a look himself.

* * *

Lloyd couldn't help but stare at the huge metal thing in the center of the room with all its loops and curls. It was set into a pretty large hole in the floor, its base sunk down fairly deep. What the hell **was** it? What was _up_ with this base? There was some crazy kind of technology being used in this building and it was making his head hurt trying to figure out what all of it was for. And the Desians; they were even weirder. Somehow, they didn't quite feel like the ones that had attacked Iselia, bringing poor Marble along in a monstrous form that he and Genis had been forced to fight. They hadn't tried to kill him right away, and they bandaged up Adam.

He absently buttoned his jacket, his gaze falling onto the blonde boy as he strode forward to examine the big metal structure more closely. A podium of some kind stood near him, metal rings hovering and spinning in place over a flat surface. Lloyd pulled his gloves back on and headed over to join him, ready to ask if the chef might have some idea of what the thing was, when the sound of doors sliding open nearby alerted him to the fact that there was someone coming in through another entrance.

Without giving his friend any warning, Lloyd grabbed Adam around the waist, one hand going up to cover his mouth as the chef uttered a startled, muffled cry, then leaped down into the space below the metal structure, pinning them both against its base as he watched the floor above them. He strained his hearing, and then he caught the voices belonging to another pair of Desians.

"Where are they? That kid in red and the cook both just up and disappeared!" one griped angrily. Lloyd narrowed his eyes, watching as two figures circled the room and the structure in their search. Adam was struggling, just a little, his hands over Lloyd's covering his mouth and trying to pry it off, which only made Lloyd press harder to keep it there.

"They're not around here, I don't see them." the other Desian reported and cursed in some odd language Lloyd didn't understand, "How the hell is it that we focused on the kid in red 'cause of his swords, and then find out the hard way that his buddy -a stupid cook- caused a hell of a lot more damage?"

"I dunno, but they gotta be around here somewhere. There's only one passage, so how'd they get past us?"

The two figures loitered around a bit more before giving up and splitting apart to go to separate parts of the room again. "Let's just head back and try another route. You grab that droid there, I'll drag this one, we'll activate the pads and open the door again."

"Good Goddess, you'd think Lord Botta would just install a door opener or something. Why do we have to go through all this manual labor?"

"Less talking, more shoving!"

Lloyd rolled his eyes as the sounds of metal scraping on metal began to fill the air, then jolted when Adam arched suddenly, hands flying to his ears and muffled screams hitting his gloved palm. It was getting harder to hold down the thrashing chef, especially since he didn't know why he was panicking so much. Sure the noise wasn't all that pretty, but it wasn't _that_ grating on the ears, was it?

Finally the scraping sounds ended and Adam sagged back against Lloyd, limp, and the sizzling from earlier started up. Now Lloyd recognized it; it was like the sizzling in the air just before he was zapped in Triet. That was probably electricity! What were the Desians doing with metal things and electricity to open the doors?

"All right. There. It's done. Let's get going." the first voice complained and the sound of the doors swishing open then closed let him know they were clear to get up from under the floor. Lloyd pulled himself free of the blonde, eyebrow raising as Adam sat up on his own and pressed his hands against his head.

"Geez, you freaked out pretty bad there. What the heck got into you?" he demanded to know.

"S-sorry. I... I've got pretty sensitive hearing." the chef replied shakily and looked up at the brunet with a weak smile, "Been that way since I was little. Are they gone?"

Lloyd peered over the edge of the floor, scanning their surroundings and catching sight of a pair of floating machines just circling around the room mindlessly. Were those what the Desians used to open the doors? Why were they floating around when earlier they'd been scraping the floor? He also spotted two blue panels on the floor, with grooves that trailed away from them. He followed them with his eyes, tracing their paths to the doorway of the second entrance. Ah, so that must be what those guys were doing. They put the machines over the blue pads, zapped them, and that somehow made the doors open.

"Yeah, we're clear. C'mon. We gotta open that door so we can get outta here." Lloyd pointed out and climbed up from the space. He turned to hold out a hand, expecting Adam to need help getting out, and blinked in surprise when the chef leaped up and out to land lightly on his own feet. "Hey, if you could do that, why didn't you jump down in the first place?" he asked in surprise, eyes wide and blinking almost dumbly. Adam shot him a halfhearted glare, cheeks reddening.

"You're the one who grabbed me before I could, Lloyd. Which reminds me, please don't manhandle me like that again; I think I've just gotten more bruises." he replied dryly. Lloyd huffed in annoyance.

"Sorry, but would you rather we get caught again?" he shot back. Adam threw up his hands in exasperation.

"We wouldn't have been caught _because I would have jumped on my own_!" he exclaimed, then shook his head, "Oh, never mind! We have to activate the door, right? Do you have anything that can discharge electricity?" Lloyd gave him a blank look and the chef pulled a hand over his face. "Something that shoots electricity. Do you have something like that?" he amended.

"Just the Sorcerer's Ring, but it only shoots fire." the brunet replied and then blinked, "Oh, wait. There was that weird thing you were standing next to earlier. Lemme check that."

Lloyd left Adam to run over to the podium, examining it closer. The flat surface had an outline of a hand on it, so he put his hand there out of curiosity. A floating ball of light hovering in the center of the floating rings suddenly started pulsing, zapping the red gem of the ring until it turned violet in color. He pulled his hand out, looking at the ring oddly. That was weird. What did that light do to the Sorcerer's Ring?

He turned and aimed the ring into open air, willing it to fire once again. Instead of the burst of flame that he was used to, a small ball of electricity shot forward, almost too quick for him to truly see. It was like a little blast of lightning surged out of the ring. Lloyd lit up; this was great! With this, he could zap the weird machines and open the door! He hurried back to the chef to explain his plan.

It didn't take them very long. Adam would get in the path of a floating machine and catch its attention, then dash away from it in a way that would lure it over the blue panel. Once the machine was right on it, Lloyd would fire the altered Sorcerer's Ring and electrify it. The brunet wondered just how much harder the ordeal could have been if he'd been alone in the base. He was thankful that he had a friend with him; this was kind of like a mini-adventure despite the threat of recapture and execution looming over them both.

"Door's open." Adam reported, standing by the panel next to the entrance. Lloyd jogged over to him in time to see the chef press a few keys in some kind of order. "We should get going now."

"What'd you do?" Lloyd asked as they headed down another hall. Adam gave him a puzzled look and the brunet jerked his head back in the direction they left, "The door back there. You were pushing some buttons next to it..."

"Oh! I was just messing with it." the chef replied with a laugh, "It looked interesting."

The next large room they entered had yet another weird metal structure in its center, along with three blue-white columns lined up against a wall with some kind of podium in front of them, and another door. The door had three bars across it, a triple lock. Irritated, Lloyd went over and started looking it over in hopes of finding a way to break the locks.

Adam went straight to the odd podium.

* * *

Magitechnology. This base was full of it. From the doors to the cells to these elaborate locking mechanisms, it was all magitechnology. Adam bit his lip again as he thought back to the panel he'd been tapping at in the previous room. The screen told him how the door's lock was set, so all he did was access its menu and set it differently. Now it wouldn't open at all, so that would make it harder for anyone to be dragged to a cell. That should keep those two footmen locked up even longer.

Now this one. _This_ was an interesting lock indeed. Adam reached the console on the other side of the metal structure and examined the menu on the touchscreen interface. There were images of how the structure had to be oriented in order to open each of the three locks along with arrows pointing to each of the columns that depicted how much they would move the structure.

Adam smiled. That would have been enough for Lloyd to figure out, and then he would shoot the electricity at the columns until the structure was pointed the way it was supposed to in order to open the door. That would take a while, and the Wonder Chef didn't care to stay in this place much longer. This was no Desian base; there was no smell of death and blood in the air, no sense of misery permeating the walls. But it wasn't a good place for him to be in anyway.

While Lloyd kicked at the door, Adam started typing at the screen, searching for the commands that would circumvent the elaborate locks and just open the door. Magitechnology was commonplace for him, living in the Wonder Chef Family's secret base. It was a perk of being who they were, that they would be allowed to keep it as long as...

Adam shook his head furiously. He didn't want to think on that, he had to focus on what he was doing **now**. Furtively, he glanced towards Lloyd to be sure he was still distracted, then typed in the final few commands before leaving the console to join the brunet. The locks on the doors disengaged suddenly, startling Lloyd just as he met up with him.

"Whoa! What happened?" he asked in surprise, blinking at the now open door. Adam shrugged, playing dumb.

"Maybe it had enough of you kicking it?" he suggested, "Either way, it's open, so let's get going!" Lloyd gave him a strange look, then shrugged and ran ahead with the chef at his side. The scent of fresh air, though dry and arid, seemed to encourage them. An exit was nearby and open. They dashed ahead even faster, excited to be free... only to come to a screeching halt at the sight of several guards rushing towards them.

"Dammit. This way!" Lloyd exclaimed, darting down a hall to the side, grabbing onto Adam's wrist as he dashed by. The first door he spotted, he dragged them both into, spinning around to watch it slide shut before the sounds of approaching feet drew close and then faded. "Phew! That was close. They don't know we're here." the brunet sighed in relief. Adam nodded, then froze, the hairs on the back of his neck rising.

"And just who the hell are you?" an unknown voice questioned in annoyance. Lloyd stiffened, shooting a glance over at Adam, who only winced in recognition. He knew that voice. It was one of three that he heard when the day came to renew the pact his family kept. The two of them turned around to face a tall half-elf, clad in dark clothes with a cape, blue hair tied back in a simple ponytail. He glared at them both before recognition -and fear?- flickered in his eyes, his gaze tracing over the fork strapped to Adam's back before looking over his face, that fear fading in favor of relief and confusion. "You...?"

"Give me your name and I'll give you mine." Lloyd retorted almost arrogantly, cutting off anything the man might have said. The half-elf glared again, raising a hand and summoning a growing ball of electricity before his palm. Adam's eyes widened. _Magic?_ Was that what had hit him and Lloyd in Triet? Quickly, he reached back over his shoulder and pulled the Wonder Fork free, gripping it in both hands as Lloyd lifted his own to shield himself.

"Don't try it!" he warned the half-elf, but he'd already dropped the spell, looking at Lloyd's hand in surprise.

"An Exsphere? You're... Lloyd?" the man murmured in shock. Lloyd lowered his hands suspiciously as the man drew a few steps closer, peering at him. "Hmm. Yes. I see the resemblance." he added under his breath.

Adam found himself growing confused, more so than Lloyd beside him. Resemblance? To who? And what was this man doing here? This man, whose name was Yuan, who was another Seraph of Cruxis; what was he doing in this place?

* * *

Alarms suddenly rang and Lloyd took advantage of the distraction to grab Adam by the arm and move further away from the weird Desian, hoping the distance would be enough to give them both a chance to dodge any magic being thrown at them. The door opened again and the brunet gasped at the sight of a familiar Desian leader rushing in with a pair of his guards.

"Sir! We've received reports that the Chosen's group has infiltrated the base!" the broad-shouldered man declared. Lloyd pointed at him accusingly.

"You! You're the Desian that attacked Iselia and tried to kill Colette!" he yelled. The older man looked at him, as if realizing just then that he was there, which only annoyed Lloyd even more.

"So _you're_ Lloyd? This **is** amusing." he mused aloud. The other Desian started barking orders.

"Botta! I'm leaving. Our plans will be ruined if he sees me." he commanded, "Deal with the Chosen when you see her." Botta nodded and the Desian turned to leave through another doorway. He paused and shot a strange look at Lloyd. "Lloyd. The next time we meet, you're mine." he vowed in a cold voice. The brunet glared back at him, hands clenching into fists. The Desian ignored him, switching his gaze to Adam, who was still gripping the giant fork in his hands defensively. "...You're risking quite a bit, Wonder Chef, getting involved like this. We'll see how long you last." Satisfied with his own words, the Desian then strode through the door, vanishing from sight.

Before Lloyd could ask how that guy knew Adam, a small explosion rocked the room, startling the two of them and the Desians. The first door opened, and Lloyd lit up at the sight of his friends all rushing in to help them. Genis was there, making him feel immensely relieved. And there was Colette and Professor Sage, and even Kratos!

"Lloyd, Adam! Are you guys okay?" Genis called out to them worriedly as Colette bounced in place excitedly, shaking her fists in time with her jumps.

"Are you all right? Are you hurt?" she asked in concern. Lloyd waved towards them, smiling and oblivious to the flinch Adam gave when the mercenary looked them both over quickly from where he stood.

"They appear to be unharmed. For the most part." he remarked in an unimpressed tone. Professor Sage looked relieved, gripping her staff in one hand.

"Perfect. I'll take care of all of you at once." Botta declared and threw a hand forward to send his guards chasing after the rescue party. Kratos darted forward to provide cover for the Sage siblings and Colette ran out of the way, turning to throw her chakrams when she had a clear shot. Lloyd cheered and dashed in as well, swords out and eager to fight.

"Come on, Adam! Keep Genis and Professor Sage covered so they can use magic!" he called back. The chef nodded, running over to join the silver-haired siblings. Now things were really looking up!

* * *

Genis spared Adam a glance to be sure he was okay, then went back to chanting out the spell for _Fireball_. If Lloyd said he'd keep them safe so they could concentrate, then they should be okay. He wondered for a moment how the Wonder Chef would be able to do that.

"Oh no, their leader is casting magic too!" Raine exclaimed in surprise and Adam stepped forward, pointing the head of his fork at the bigger man with a determined glare.

"Just let him try. The Wonder Fork can handle magic." he told them, surprising the two half-elves.

The circle of light and runes spun at Botta's feet, sandy-colored to indicate Earth magic, and he shouldered his massive and ornate sword to throw his hand forward at Genis. _"Stone Blast!"_ he boomed out.

Suddenly, the circle of light vanished, the Wonder Fork's metal rippled with sandy-colored light, and Adam uttered a soft grunt of pain before coughing and spinning the fork before himself. Raine gave a little cry of surprise and awe, Botta yelled out in shock, and Lloyd happily took down one of the guards as Kratos felled the other.

"He's dispelled my magic! That's no ordinary cook!" Botta fumed and charged at both Kratos and Lloyd, lashing out with heavy swings and slamming his sword into the floor to fling chunks of metal and earth at them. Genis sent off his barrage of fireballs to disorient the man, then took the moment to look up at their new friend in surprise, his sister casting healing spells rapidly to cover the rest of the group.

"H-how did you do that?" he asked, astonished. Adam had the fork pointing at Botta again, shaking his head.

"I'll explain later. Keep casting; I'll prevent Botta from doing the same!" he returned.

And he did try again. As though he'd forgotten what had happened before, Botta lashed out with the sword to give himself some space and summoned up the circle of light, this time aiming the spell at Lloyd. The mana spent in creating the spell vanished abruptly, the fork rippling with light as Adam coughed harder, almost gagging.

"Adam, stop it! Whatever you're doing, even if it's helping us, it's hurting you too!" Genis cried in alarm.

Botta jumped back from another of Kratos' attacks, growling. "I've underestimated you both." he hissed and threw his sword at Colette in a last ditch effort to hit the Chosen. Lloyd darted in and held up his twin blades, creating a barrier to deflect the attack. By then, Botta had already fled, disappearing through another door that refused to open to anyone else.

Raine stepped forward, picking up the sword and giving it a curious look while the rest of the group relaxed and began to wind down from the fight. Genis moved closer to the blonde chef, looking worried. Before he could say anything, Adam just shook his head and gave him a weak smile.

"Isn't this a...?" his sister began to question just as Lloyd spotted her holding the weapon, exclaiming in surprise. She lifted her gaze, train of thought interrupted. "Ah, Lloyd. Genis told me what happened when he and Noishe caught up to us in the desert." she murmured and gazed at Genis with worried eyes that were still soft with emotion, "I apologize for the trouble he's caused you." Lloyd shook his head, eyes wide.

"No, I'm the one who dragged Genis into it. I'm sorry." he apologized. Raine nodded, then turned her gaze on the blonde chef, sharp and almost distrustful, which made Genis feel a bit angry. Why was she like that? There was something about Adam that Genis felt was all right, even though he couldn't quite pin it down.

Then again, that very thing might be why she was distrustful.

"And you are... Adam, correct?" she asked of the blonde, "Genis said you were the Wonder Chef."

"That's right, Ma'am." Adam returned respectfully, looking just as wary.

"There's no time to chit chat here. More guards could arrive at any moment." Kratos pointed out and both Sage siblings noted the flinch on Adam's face at hearing his voice.

"You're right. I opened the escape route just before we came in here. Let's go." Raine agreed and ushered her students out the door, dragging Botta's forgotten sword along with her.

"C'mon, Adam, Raine can..." Genis began to tell the blonde, tugging at his sleeve, then trailed off in shock.

Adam had clapped a hand over his nose and mouth, face paling as he gagged again, eyes locked onto the bodies of the fallen guards. He stumbled backwards, quickly turned away and retched, finally emptying his stomach onto the ruined carpet of the room. Genis jumped back, alarmed and crying out his sister's name for help. Kratos responded instead, hurrying back into the room and grabbing the blonde by the arm, practically shoving him out the door to join the rest as he shot a firm look at the younger half-elf.

Unwilling to be dragged along too, Genis hurried to follow them, but couldn't help one last puzzled glance at the crude that Adam had coughed up.

It was mud, dark brown mud. Why had Adam vomited _mud_ of all things?


	3. Night in Triet and To the Ruins

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

Lloyd scowled at Kratos's rough handling of the blonde chef. They had all managed to get out of the Desian base and now stood a good distance from it, hidden by dunes. Adam had quickly pulled himself away from the mercenary once he had the chance and shielded himself behind Lloyd, giving the older man fearful glances. Lloyd didn't blame him; Kratos was a jerk, and he didn't care much for how cold the mercenary could be.

Raine was still studying the sword she had dragged along, specifically the round gem glinting in its hilt. "I have a question. Is this crystalline object an Exsphere? Genis mentioned obtaining one in Iselia." she pointed out, lifting the weapon and tapping a fingertip against the stone. Kratos leaned forward slightly, glancing it over.

"It would seem so." he agreed. Lloyd blinked. How would he know... oh.

"That's right. You use an Exsphere too." he realized aloud, one hand moving to the shimmering blue gem on the back of his hand. Kratos huffed.

"So you've noticed." Lloyd was quickly reminded that the tone of his voice was another reason why he didn't like Kratos so much. Raine only nodded, picking the stone out of its mount with a fingernail.

"These Exspheres; what are they exactly?" she went on, sounding more and more interested as she gazed at the gem in her palm. The mercenary sighed, sounding exasperated by her questions.

"That will take time to explain, and it's best done in Triet, where we won't be in constant danger from Desians and monsters." he pointed out in a controlled tone.

"I agree." Genis put in quickly, his little face flushed with worry, "Adam was sick back in that Desian's room, so being out in the desert heat can't be good for him." Lloyd blinked in surprise as he felt the blonde behind him stiffen. He hadn't been there to see that, had run out of the room as soon as he heard there was a way to escape the building.

"I'm fine. Really. Let's just go to Triet." the chef murmured, shrinking a bit further behind the brunet. Lloyd felt a bit awkward about that; when had he suddenly become a human shield? Colette walked towards him, smiling brightly.

"Lloyd! I'm so glad to see you're okay!" she exclaimed cheerfully, then leaned to one side to look around him at Adam, "Hello, I'm Colette. Very nice to meet you! I'm going to do my best to regenerate the world!"

"Ah... hello. My name's Adam." the blonde returned uncertainly. Colette giggled, and Lloyd wondered when he suddenly became surrounded by blondes.

.

The trek back to the oasis town didn't take too long, now that Genis was able to tell him how long it had been since he and Adam had been captured in the first place. The Desian base wasn't especially far from Triet, just a day and a half away, and when they finally got to the town and checked into the Mirage, it was evening, the sun recently sunk beyond the horizon. Lloyd had looked around the town worriedly, remembering that Adam had been trying to evade his former traveling companions.

Adam... Lloyd drew his attention towards the chef, who dragged his feet as he walked, clutching onto the brunet's arm as if it was the only thing holding him upright. Since they walked from the base to here, the blonde had refused to sleep, staring openly at Kratos as if expecting the man to eat him or something the moment his eyes closed.

For the most part, Kratos ignored him. Lloyd couldn't understand what was going on, and part of him figured it was probably best not to try to right away. He just kept supporting the chef, glancing every now and then at his drawn expression and fatigued way of responding to conversation, and hoped to put him to bed soon.

Raine wanted them all to meet and talk about the Exspheres in a few minutes.

* * *

Adam wasn't sure when he'd fallen asleep. He remembered hanging onto Lloyd's shoulder and arm, walking as if in a trance while the dual swordsman led him to a room in the inn. Colette had given him many worried looks while Kratos discussed payment with the innkeeper for several rooms. He remembered spending every moment since the base wide awake and scared almost out of his mind at seeing Kratos Aurion with the Chosen's group. It was a real fear for him that if he were to take his eyes off the man for even a moment, he would report to his superior that the Wonder Chef was breaking the pact and he'd be dead within a few minutes.

He didn't try anything, but that didn't do anything to reassure the young chef at all.

He remembered Lloyd leading him to one of the beds in a room they had rented, mumbling soft protests that probably hadn't made any sense even as the brunet pushed him back onto the straw-stuffed mattress, and then there was black.

When he snapped awake, it was dark, the stars were out, and all was cool and quiet. He sat up abruptly, panting, one hand reaching up involuntarily to trace fingertips over a scar that cut through his left eyebrow. Looking around, Adam was able to slowly make out details in the darkened room, straining his eyes to catch as much light as possible. There were two other beds in the room, one occupied by Lloyd, who buried himself under the blankets and snored. The other was empty.

Alarmed, Adam quickly got out of bed and grabbed for the Wonder Fork from where it rested beside his bed, stepping into his shoes and hurrying out of the inn. Where was Kratos? He had to find him, had to do something to keep him from reporting in, if he hadn't already.

He rushed out into the area just in front of the inn and its stables, windmilling his arms as he tried to stop himself. The moon was bright and full, lighting up the plaza and much of the town. Adam froze, hugging the fork as he stared at the ground. It was bright, he was exposed, and he had an ingrained fear of being out there like that, something he'd been spending time trying to break free of.

"You are the new Wonder Chef, correct?" Kratos's voice suddenly questioned. Startled, Adam spun in place, swinging the Wonder Fork up only to have it knocked out of his hands with the flat of the older man's sword. He stumbled, fell back onto the sand, and gasped when the point of that sword was held before his throat, preventing him from getting all the way up. The blonde held still, nervous sweat dotting his forehead, then swallowed hard and glared up at the stoic mercenary.

"I've been Wonder Chef for two years now. Why does Cruxis keep insisting I'm 'new'?" he growled. Kratos huffed.

"Why have you sought out the Chosen?" he questioned. Adam fell silent, glaring instead. "Your role is to hide in the corners and teach those who come across you how to cook. Why have you stepped outside of your boundary?" He still kept quiet. If he didn't answer anything, then maybe Cruxis would just think he was alone in going renegade -which he was- and then the rest of the Family would be safe. "Have you told Lloyd about Cruxis?" Adam's teeth clenched, his eyes still meeting Kratos' cold gaze.

He had wanted to, but the chance for it never came up. Lloyd was friends with the Chosen; if he had explained what happened to the Chosen to Lloyd, then he would warn Colette, and the regeneration would stop, and maybe there would be a chance for them to fight Yggdrasill.

"No. I haven't." he forced himself to say, "But I wanted to. I would tell him everything, I would show him everything if that's what it took to fight you." His hands tightened into fists to keep from shaking. "You can kill me, but another like me will come. Maybe not right away, but a Wonder Chef **will** fight Cruxis and bring it down." Adam hissed, "I'm sick of what you're doing to all those innocent people. We're not going to be sheep led to slaughter just because your twisted boss said so!"

"You wish to stand against Cruxis? Knowing of the pact between us, the truce that has allowed you to live this long, knowing of what would befall not just you but your entire organization, you would choose this path, Wonder Chef?" Kratos inquired almost casually. The blonde swallowed hard, still pinned in place by the tip of the steel sword hovering where it had been for the past few minutes.

"My name is Adam Voraci. If I'm going to die tonight, it's just going to be **me**. The Wonder Chef will continue to live on as a title for my successor." he shot back. Kratos shifted and Adam shut his eyes tightly, half-expecting the sword to be driven into his neck. Instead, he heard the sound of metal scraping as the blade was put away and he opened his eyes in surprise to see the Seraph standing over him, arms folded over his chest.

"You are to continue to travel with the Chosen's group, but you are not to tell them of Cruxis, of who I am, or Tethe'alla. Not unless I give you word to do so. From now on, you answer to me only. No one else would need to know of your movements." Kratos told him firmly, and Adam sat up, dumbfounded by what he was hearing. "Support them with your skills, teach them what recipes you can that will allow them to become stronger. If you can do this, perhaps your wish will come to pass." With that, he turned and headed back into the inn, leaving Adam to pick himself up, still stunned by what had just happened.

But he was alive, and Kratos had pretty much given him free reign to help the Chosen's group while covering for him with Cruxis. Why? What did the Seraph stand to gain from having him join forces with the Chosen?

Shakily, Adam got to his feet, grabbed the Wonder Fork, and went back inside. Suddenly, sleep sounded like such a good idea. Maybe all of this would make sense in the morning.

.

He woke again some time later, this time because Lloyd was prodding at his shoulder again. That was starting to become habit, and Adam wasn't sure he liked that. So he smacked at the offending hand and turned over, pulling a pillow over his head.

_"Cinque minuti."_ he muttered.

"Huh?" Lloyd sounded confused, and the prodding went on.

"Five more minutes!" Adam groaned, even as his mind grew more aware of his surroundings and reminded him that he'd used the wrong language earlier, "Never mind. I'm awake now." He turned back over, blinking up at the brunet, and found himself struck with a strange sense of awe.

It was morning, he was alive, and he was part of the Chosen's group. It hadn't all been a dream. He sat up abruptly, gripping the blankets in one hand as he looked around. This was real, this was really happening. He wasn't going to just be hiding in corners and out of the way places anymore; he was actually going to follow Colette and find a way to talk her out of completing her journey!

"Good morning. Are you feeling better?" Lloyd asked, looking as if he wasn't sure the blonde might suddenly break if he said or did the wrong thing. Adam blinked, still in a bit of a daze.

"Um... yes. Good morning, Lloyd. I'm okay." he finally answered, looking up at him, "Is something going on?" The brunet nodded, apparently satisfied that he was okay.

"Yeah, we're getting ready to do some last minute shopping and then go to the ruins. You're still coming, right?" Lloyd told him and then turned away to grab for his jacket, which had been tossed carelessly onto a nearby chair, along with his swords and boots. "Get dressed. I already asked Professor Sage last night if you could come and she said it was okay. You missed out on the talk about Exspheres, but you looked really bad and she thought if you didn't get some sleep right away you'd end up really sick."

While Lloyd chatted on through redressing, Adam slid out of bed and reached for his own clothes. They were a bit wrinkled since he'd fallen asleep in them first, but the second time he made sure they were folded away neatly. He'd left his pants on, wearing the white undershirt to bed, so all he had to do was pull on the green and white travel coat and belt, harness the Wonder Fork across his back and slip on the red cape. He pulled his hat out of his pack, shook it free of dust and carefully tried to get the shape back before pulling it onto his head.

"You really wear that thing?" Lloyd suddenly asked, pointing at the hat on his head. Adam gave him a flat look as he finger-combed the fringe that swept over his eye.

"It's part of the Wonder Chef attire; how are people supposed to recognize me without it?" he countered and stepped into his shoes again, strapping them into place and dusting off his hands, "If my father had his way, I'd be wearing all white, like the other chefs and cooks. I wanted to stand out, so people would **know** that I'm the Wonder Chef." He shrugged, looking a bit furtive -he didn't really like talking about his father, so why had he brought that up?- before muttering, "Doesn't matter now. Some people still don't seem to take me seriously." At Lloyd's puzzled look he shook his head. "Never mind. Let's go! I need a new frying pan."

* * *

Lloyd found himself watching the newest member of their group more often than he cared to admit. After the two of them were scolded by Professor Sage for oversleeping -and it was kind of funny to see Adam turn red, he probably never got scolded like that before- and were then given this monster list thing to fill out -Ew, homework-, it was time to grab provisions for the trip to the Triet Ruins. And while shopping for those supplies, he found his gaze drifting over to the other blonde, just watching.

He was strange. Everything seemed like a surprise to him, and he seemed to have gotten over his initial fears of Kratos, though why he was scared mindless in the first place was a mystery. Lloyd wondered how often the chef got out into the world. Probably not very often, if his blank expression at the weapon shopkeeper's explanation of his wares was anything to go by. Kratos came away from the armor shop and held out a leather guard to him, probably telling him he had to wear that over his clothes.

Lloyd ended up snickering at Adam's aghast expression.

"Um, Lloyd?" Colette began, walking up to him with a puzzled look, "Is Adam someone you met here?" He nodded and the girl brightened. "It must be fun, making friends with people from other towns!"

"I don't think he's from Triet, though, Colette." he told her, "He doesn't dress like them and he doesn't handle heat well. He might be from someplace else in Sylvarant." The two of them watched as Adam struggled to put on the guard under his coat while Kratos held the fork and harness with an exasperated look on his face. Why was he trying to wear it _that_ way?

"He's funny." the blonde girl remarked and held up her hands clasped together, "Oh, not in a bad way or in a 'ha ha' kind of way! Like in a 'Wow, this looks like fun!' kind of way." Lloyd looked at her, eyebrow raised, then back at Adam, who had apparently given up and stood with a scowl on his face as Kratos dressed him in the guard like a child.

"He doesn't look that way now. Wait till we get to the ruins; maybe he'll be funny then?" he suggested and Colette giggled.

"He's kind of cute too!" she added and Lloyd stared at her, startled that she would say that. The Chosen patted her own cheeks with her hands. "His face, it looks kind of like a cute girl's, doesn't it? And such pretty eyes. Why does he hide one, I wonder?" she mused and then smiled, "Oh, I know! He's already so cute, if he showed the other eye, he might become too cute and everyone will keep following him and calling him cute!"

"Colette! Boys don't like being called cute!" Lloyd stammered out in dismay, face flushing.

"Oh? I'm sorry." she yelped, one hand coming up to her mouth delicately. She blinked wide eyes at him, then looked towards the other blonde now weighing frying pans at another stall, then smiled helplessly up at Lloyd. "But I can't help it! He's cute! You made a really cute friend!" she finally said brightly and giggled again.

It didn't help that Kratos had dressed him in girl's armor, too. More proof that Adam didn't get out much; if he'd known **that**, he probably would have bolted as soon as he saw the mercenary show up with it in his hands.

He was soon joined by Raine and Genis, the two of them looking on at the chef as well. Genis still looked worried. "Hey, Lloyd." he began, looking up at the brunet, "Did Adam eat anything weird back at that Desian base?"

"No. We were too busy running around trying to get out of there and keep from getting caught. Why?" Lloyd returned curiously.

"After that battle with the big Desian, he coughed up a bunch of mud." the smaller boy pointed out, and looked up at his sister who had on an astonished expression, "I just figured he must have eaten something covered in dirt to do that. Wonder if he's really okay now?"

"He said he was fine when I woke him up." Lloyd returned uncertainly and blinked as looking up revealed that Kratos and Adam had joined them, the chef grinning happily. "Got your new pan weapon?" he asked jokingly.

"Yes, the newest model of cast iron frying pan, according to that shopkeeper. It's very sturdy and kind of heavy, but I'm sure I'll get used to it quickly. I'll just do more cooking to get stronger." the blonde returned and yelped suddenly, eyes wide as a hand went up to his mouth, "Oh Goddess! I almost forgot! I was going to teach you recipes!" He bit his lower lip thoughtfully, considering the problem for a moment before nodding his head. "All right. Here's what I'll do. I'll give you this first recipe free. After that, whenever we go into a new town, I'll go and hide. Find me, and I'll teach you the next recipe." he suggested cheerfully, "How does that sound? You'll get recipes and I won't _technically_ be ditching my duties as Wonder Chef."

"Sounds fun! Yes! Let's do that!" Colette exclaimed, and Lloyd found himself -along with everyone else- having to agree. After all, she was the Chosen, which meant she was the leader.

"I'd like to have this journey done within my lifetime, if you don't mind." Kratos pointed out dryly. The brunet grumbled as they started walking to the town entrance where Noishe waited. Leave it to Kratos to ruin something that was starting to sound interesting.

* * *

As they traveled across the desert towards the ruins, Lloyd couldn't help but notice he was actually learning something. Not about monsters, not really, because Professor Sage was still on him to fill out that list and he took to just copying entries from Colette's notes -although that was kind of dangerous since she kept giving monsters pet names and Genis wasn't going to be of help correcting them for him-, but more about Kratos and Adam.

He kind of warmed up to Kratos just a little bit that night in Triet, when they talked about pets and then the mercenary had to go and spoil it by lecturing him on his sword skills again. Still, the fact that Kratos used to have a pet and Noishe seemed to like him kind of earned him some points in Lloyd's book. And in fights, Kratos tended to throw him a few bursts of _First Aid_ for seemingly no reason.

_'You'd think he'd do that for Colette. He was hired to look after __**her**__,__ not douse me in healing magic all damn day.'_

Thinking of those fights brought him to thinking about what he was learning about Adam. The Wonder Chef was decent in battle, as long as there was no actual bloodshed going on. He could smack things around with the pan and a new supply of red satay meant he could get monsters and bandits to flail around uselessly. But the minute Lloyd or Kratos, or anyone else for that matter, dropped a body onto the sands with gore or whatever splattering under them, Adam froze up, eyes wide and face paling and the weirdest look on his face. Like someone he knew had just died in front of him.

Genis had looked like that when he realized they had fatally wounded Marble in Iselia...

It didn't clear up all that easily after battle, either. The group would have to move away from the field and put some distance between them and the corpses before the chef would come to his senses. It was kind of annoying, but also a little worrying. Why did he freak like that every time? Had he gone through something like he and Genis did and now it just kind of flashed back every time they got pulled into a battle?

Well, not **every** time. Lloyd amended that in his head as he wiped off his two swords. They'd just come out of another attack by wild animals in the desert, just a few hours away from the ruins. There were wolves and snakes and hawks, all kind of possessed or something because no way would such different animals attack together like that in the natural order of things. Between three swords and barrages of fireballs, the animals fell in no time.

Lloyd expected Adam to be all frozen up again, but he jerked in shock when the Wonder Chef darted in to swipe at one last hawk that had been diving for the brunet's head. The giant fork slammed into it and the bird hit the desert, flapping weakly before it expired. Adam looked unfazed, glaring down at it before looking up at him to ask if he was all right.

So if whatever was killed was something that could be eaten, Adam was fine. But if it wasn't, he froze up. Man, he took this cooking thing way too seriously!

They all rested for a while, snacking on cabbage rolls to replenish some mana and heal some minor scrapes. It was something that Adam had taught them, the free recipe he mentioned, and Lloyd couldn't help but laugh alongside Genis and Colette when he gave Raine a dismayed look at her attempt to make the dish. When he tried to correct her and got smacked upside the head for his trouble, Lloyd finally settled into feeling like the chef had been part of the group all along, they just hadn't been able to meet until that fateful day in Triet.

"Let me see your homework. I want to check how you're doing in assembling your monster lists." Professor Sage announced, sitting on a heap of travel packs as the teens sat in a semi-circle at her feet.

"How did **I** get involved in this?" Adam complained, pulling the papers from his pocket, "I've never even **been** to Iselia! I'm not a student of yours!" He held them out to the teacher anyway, pouting as she collected them all to look over. Lloyd just grinned at him. "What? Why are you smiling?" the blonde mumbled uneasily, leaning away from him a little.

"Lloyd, stop leering at him. If you freak him out and he runs away, he'll never finish teaching us those recipes!" Genis pointed out, poking the brunet in the side, just between his ribs.

* * *

Raine looked over the papers in her hands, checking to see how they were being filled out. A lot of information could be gleaned from how someone recorded things, and she had an interest in learning as much as she could about this boy claiming to be the Wonder Chef.

She'd read the stories buried in dusty old books found in libraries and ruins, tales of a strange man who could appear and disappear at whim, spreading the knowledge of cooking wherever he went. This boy, youthful and slender and full of paranoia, couldn't have lived long enough to look young and still have mastered all those recipes he was reputed to know. Not unless he was a half-elf or an elf, and both she and Genis would have known immediately if he was either of those.

Genis's list was precise and neat and meticulous, and Raine felt pride swell for her younger brother's studies. Colette's notes were full of pet names and flowers, ribbons and clouds doodled in place of where sketches of monsters should be. It was typical of her and, knowing what would soon befall the girl, Raine couldn't fault her for it. Lloyd's monster list was also typical of the dwarven-raised boy; several pages were obvious copies of Colette's, with different names to put in place of the pet names. The sketches were much nicer though, and actually looked like the proper monsters, but everything else was filled with vague data. 'Kill on sight. Pretty nasty looking.' Things like that. Pretty to the point, but Lloyd was not really one for noticing details like Genis.

Now Adam's list... _there_ was a treasure trove of information. His handwriting was neat and elegant, almost archaic, and Raine had a hard time quelling her urge to coo over it. The script looked strangely similar to certain old texts from the Balacruf dynasty, making her wonder about how he was taught, wherever he came from. This kind of writing was thought to be lost, lending a bit more credibility to the Wonder Chef claim.

The sketches weren't very good, just basic enough to identify major markings for the monsters, and the information filled out made the teacher's eyes widen. They were recipes, or maybe ideas for new recipes. Lists of ingredients, scribbled musings on various cooking times and methods, notes on which parts of the monsters might be more palatable than others... Adam seemed to be a boy obsessed with cooking.

She looked up at the children in front of her, brows furrowing thoughtfully. He really was a strange boy. Adam had crawled across the sand to escape Lloyd and now sat behind Genis, mock cowering behind him and laughing when he used his kendama to bop the brunet. He froze, shocked and eyes wide, when Colette got into the gusto of the play and jumped the other blonde, arms wrapping around his neck as she giggled happily. Raine watched him slowly relax and force a smile back at the young Chosen, looking a bit uncomfortable but trying to hide it.

Such a strange, strange boy.

* * *

Kratos watched over the group from his post nearby. When it came to Lloyd, he wasn't sure exactly what to do. Part of him wanted to reach out to the son he thought he'd lost, and part wanted to keep his distance and not meddle with the life Lloyd had already built for himself. That was the reason why he wanted the boy to stay behind in Iselia while the Chosen went on her journey.

That failed utterly. The boy had gotten himself exiled and followed them all the way here to join the group. All Kratos could do now was try and drill some sense into his head so he could keep himself alive long enough for the Seraph to figure out what the hell to do with him.

The Wonder Chef was another matter. He had expected the Family to send its more senior member, but when Genis went on his panicked tirade about a much younger chef he couldn't help but wince. The day he, Yuan and Mithos went down to renew the pact that fateful day -or rather, remind the silly humans that they had better stay in line- Kratos had noticed the little blonde boy hiding behind the cape and legs of his father, the Wonder Chef at the time.

His left eye had been completely covered over in bandages, wrapped around his head so his hair stuck out in clumps, and his visible eye was dark, seeing straight through the three Seraphim without actually _seeing_ them. The elder chef had explained curtly that his son had been injured in an unfortunate incident which had temporarily blinded him. He still managed to find ways of maneuvering without completely colliding into things and could tell when someone was near him. Kratos found himself feeling a little sorry for the boy, reminded of how old his own son should be -about the same age, if he recalled correctly-.

What had drawn his attention most, however, was a sudden surge of anger and determination in that one blind eye, a kind of fire that told him in no uncertain terms that this boy would be a force to be reckoned with if he ever laid hands on power of any kind. The same kind of fire that he now saw in Lloyd's eyes whenever he talked about the world regeneration and sealing Desians... the same kind of fire that once burned in Mithos's eyes.

And now, today, here was that once blinded boy, wielding the power of the Wonder Chef and declaring his intent to bring Cruxis to its knees somehow. He looked awkward, out of place, among the other children, and Kratos knew it was because of the way he'd been raised. Adam had not had much contact with others his age, and he had been treated as either a pariah or a fragile creature since his injury. And like all Wonder Chefs before him, the need to keep out of sight and be disguised, to flee from sight upon discovery, was trained into him.

Yet here he was, trying his hardest to break away from those chains so he could better reach out to those he felt could help him bring down Cruxis. And Lloyd had latched onto him and pulled him into a circle of warmth and friendship and contact that was overwhelming him. All Kratos could do was provide a thin shield at best for the chef and hope that he and Lloyd together, with all that fire in them, could somehow keep them both surviving the upcoming trials until he could decide on the next step.

Maybe, just maybe, these two boys were the chance he'd been waiting for.


	4. The Seal of Fire

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

"Ah... so _hot_." Lloyd groaned as they finally made it to the Triet Ruins, "I am _sick_ of this desert!"

"I knew you'd be worn out by the time we got here!" Genis pointed out accusingly. Adam gave them both a puzzled look as he continued trailing after Colette. Noishe trotted along with them before stopping with a whimper, the Wonder Chef halting in his tracks as well.

Something was nearby, he could _feel_ it, but he didn't know how to describe it. He'd never felt anything like it before.

"Noishe? Something wrong, boy?" Lloyd questioned as Kratos darted forward and drew his sword.

"Be on your guard! There are enemies about!" he declared as a pair of floating spheres of red rock and flames suddenly flew at the group from among the ruins. Raine quickly held up her staff defensively, ready to use her healing arts. Genis yelped and pulled out his kendama, running back to join her alongside the blonde chef.

"Wh-what are those things?" Lloyd exclaimed, slashing at the spheres as they swooped around, "Colette! Watch out!" The girl darted about, gripping her chakrams and lashing them at the spheres when they drew close to her. She didn't dare throw them, not when her targets were zipping around like that.

Adam kept his guard over the Sage siblings, Wonder Fork in one hand and tracing the paths of the flying objects. He gripped the frying pan in the other, waiting. There! One of the spheres was making a curve in the air that would take it straight to Genis if he predicted it right.

"Genis, have any water spells?" he muttered, "If so, start chanting now. I'm going to bring down a target for you."

"G-got it, Adam! One _Aqua Edge_, coming right up!" the smaller boy agreed, flipping the kendama as the circle of light bloomed at his feet, brilliant blue in color to match the element.

The sphere swooped in as predicted and Adam leaped up to meet it head on, swinging the pan in an overhead arc to slam it onto the ground, cracking the rocky surface from the impact. He spun on one heel, twirled the fork around and winced a little as he stabbed it into the weakened part of the sphere to hold it in place.

"Now, Genis!" he cried. The silver-haired boy raised his kendama with a shout.

_"Drown! Aqua Edge!"_ Genis finished, and discs of water formed from the summoned mana to rush forward and wash over the trapped thing. It exploded into fragments, startling Adam enough to knock him backwards. "You okay?" the other boy called out and waved a hand, "That was awesome! We found its weakness!" He immediately started chanting for another water attack, eyes tracking the other sphere.

Turned out it wasn't necessary anymore. Kratos and Lloyd both jumped at it at the same time, swords smashing into it collectively and making it explode into nothingness. The two kind of glared at each other before Lloyd turned away and started walking to Colette, examining her for injury. Adam picked himself up from the ground, dusting himself off and sliding the fork back into its harness before turning and giving a small start at how close Raine had gotten to him. She peered at his face with some amount of scrutiny, then reached down to gently grab his wrist and pull his hand up, examining it as well.

"Wh-what are you doing?" the blonde stammered, face reddening from the contact. What was it with these people and all this... _touching_?!

"I'm making sure you weren't hit by those fragments. If you were wounded and sand or those fragments entered those wounds, you could come down with infections or illness." Raine told him clinically, lifting his other hand to study carefully. Adam pulled his hands back, a bit too quickly to be polite, and she gave him a surprised look.

"Please don't. I'm fine." he told her quietly, and absently rubbed his hands where she'd touched him, "I'm not... it's just that..." He trailed off, unable to put to words what he felt without growing more nervous and embarrassed about it. Finally, he shrugged helplessly, giving the puzzled teacher a weak smile. "I'm sorry. I'm not used to this." he managed to get out. Raine nodded after a moment, then went ahead to see to Lloyd and Colette.

"This is going to be a nuisance." Kratos muttered as the group reconvened. Noishe had run off during the skirmish and no amount of calling his name would lure the strange dog back. The mercenary shook his head in exasperation. "I see you're all in need of learning defensive skills." he went on, "Am I correct in assuming that everyone here can manipulate mana to some degree?" Adam noticed how his gaze seemed to linger on him just a bit longer than on Lloyd.

There were collective nods, Adam among them. Of course he knew how to control mana. He couldn't be a proper Wonder Chef if he didn't have _that_ skill. Kratos seemed pleased by this.

"All right. Then this shouldn't be too difficult to learn." he decided, and the next hour or so was spent on getting the various members of the Chosen's group to learn how to summon up bubbles of mana to act as basic shields. They deflected most sword strikes and magical attacks, but quickly waned in strength as the assaults went on. "Don't rely on it too often, if you wish to live long." Kratos pointed out firmly to Lloyd, who only mocked his words in silence once the auburn-haired man wasn't looking.

Adam laughed softly behind one hand, then tried to look innocent when the mercenary shot him a befuddled glare, which only set Genis and Lloyd off into laughter.

"Now, now, children. We must hurry to the Seal of Fire so we can break it and truly begin the world's regeneration." Raine scolded and ushered them all off to the ruined remnants of a temple, its foundation and a few pillars still clinging to existence.

The chef found himself wondering if now was the time to warn Colette, tell her to not do this and try searching for another way to save the world. But as they walked up to the crumbling foundation and Raine went off on some tangent about the polycarbonate slab in its center, he caught Kratos's gaze and the words he was gathering died in his throat. The older man shook his head very slightly, eyes almost cold and impassive, and his hand ghosted over the hilt of his sword.

Adam turned his face away as Colette placed her hand on the freshly discovered oracle stone, giggling in delight as the slab moved aside to reveal steps.

"Wow! I guess I really **am** the Chosen!" she tittered, all bright smiles and rosy cheeks. Lloyd looked excited by the opening of the ruins; it was all just another exciting adventure to him. With a sigh, Adam jogged up to join him, sticking close by the blonde girl in a halfhearted attempt to look like he was helping her go kill off her humanity.

* * *

It was kinda dark inside the ruins, and hot too. Lloyd was a little disappointed that the heat wouldn't let up just because they weren't in the sun anymore. Worse, there were monsters down here too, and not many of them looked very edible. And if they couldn't be eaten, then Adam was going to go into shock as soon as the battles were over. Even if it was something as nasty as a giant scorpion.

He liked the chef, _really_ he did, but if he had to pull the blonde away from corpses just to get him to come around one more time, he couldn't be held responsible for what he was gonna do to the guy.

"What's the matter?" Lloyd finally demanded under his breath, trying to keep the conversation private as they sorted out the strange moving platform puzzle in the lava-filled room. Seeing the molten rock and metal gave him all the explanation he needed on why it was so sweltering in the ruins. "You don't like the sight of blood or something? You won't be able to fight very well until you get over that."

"I can't help it." Adam grumbled back softly, arms folded over his chest. The red-tinted light, weak as it was in here, made his blue eyes seem almost violet and inhuman. "I'm the Wonder Chef; actually _killing_ things really isn't what I do, so I feel sick just thinking about it. It's not as bad when they're something we can use for food, but the other kinds of monsters? Actual _people_?" He shuddered, eyes shutting tight. "I can't take that. My heart won't let me."

"Your... heart?" Lloyd questioned, puzzled. What did that have to do with anything? He raised a hand and held it over his own heart. It beat steadily, strongly. "Do you have a weak heart?" Out of curiosity, Lloyd moved his hand to press against the other boy's chest, checking his heartbeat. It was the same, strong and steady... well, until it started speeding up just then. Adam stepped back quickly, eyes wide and cheeks red.

"Don't do that!" he blurted out and then covered his mouth with one hand. Lloyd blinked at him, then grew aware of the several sets of eyes all looking at him and the chef. Professor Sage seemed to understand what was going on, her voice soft and gentle but also firm.

"Lloyd." she called, "Adam isn't used to physical contact. It would be wise to refrain from touching him unless necessary." The brunet just tilted his head in confusion before looking over at the blonde in sudden realization. So that's why he was freaking out in the Desian base? When he'd grabbed him and dragged him into hiding? He didn't like to be touched?

"Not even a hug?" he asked, "You shook my hand without freaking out." Adam shifted nervously.

"You offered your hand, you didn't grab mine. So, I was okay with that." he explained, "And... I don't think I can handle a hug... I haven't been hugged in a long time."

"Wow, being a Wonder Chef must be pretty rough." Genis remarked in surprise and turned to Lloyd, "Hey, we've figured out the rest of the puzzle while you were scaring Adam, so let's hurry up and get to the seal!" Lloyd huffed indignantly. He hadn't meant to scare the other boy; he just wanted to know why he said his heart wouldn't let him finish off monsters and other enemies!

"Shut it, Genis!" he shot back and marched for the exit. Honestly, why did it feel like he did something really wrong when all he wanted was just a simple answer?

* * *

The teleport disc at the end of the maze of platforms and pillars led into a large room decorated ornately with carvings, painted walls and pillars. At the end was a large metal altar, shining with red light. Lloyd winced as Professor Sage went on yet another tirade in her Ruin Mode, gushing over how magitechnology was used to build the altar room, her hands caressing the pillars and engravings almost lovingly.

"Look at these ancient pictographic writings!" she cooed, "Ohhhh, it's wondrous! How I wish these could be translated into modern language! There must be a glyph key _somewhere_...!" Adam walked up to join her, moving almost uncertainly, and Lloyd didn't blame him. She **was** acting pretty scary. "Adam! Glad to see someone with an interest in history!" Raine snagged the chef by the collar and pointed at the etchings, ignoring his yelp of surprise and following protests at being 'manhandled' again. "Look at these carvings! They seem to be indicative of a description regarding this..." she lectured.

"It's the artist's signature." Adam butted in flatly, glaring up at the woman that held his collar and cape in her grip. Lloyd's interest perked up, so he hadn't realized Kratos had walked up beside him until the man spoke.

"Ugh. He should have kept silent." the mercenary murmured under his breath, "This is going to waste time." The brunet looked up at him in surprise, then back at the two by the wall. Funny, he was kind of getting that feeling too...

"You are capable of reading these pictographs?!" Professor Sage demanded of the chef in her clutches, eyes wide and sparkling with interest and something a bit more volatile. Adam stared up at her, color draining from his face.

"Um, uh, well..." he stammered nervously, "Only... a little?" She loomed over him with a wide smile and Lloyd hurried over to rescue him.

"Come on, Professor Sage, we're here to break the seal, remember?" he told her, carefully pulling her fingers off of Adam's cape and collar, "Besides, you're the one who said Adam doesn't like getting grabbed." The blonde shrank behind him, using him as a shield, and the teacher looked a little put off that her chance at reading ancient texts was going to have to wait another day.

"Heh heh heh. You got _lucky_, Adam!" Genis teased. He stood with Colette in the center of the room, closest to the altar out of all of them. Lloyd frowned, opening his mouth to give a retort and pausing when he felt fingers gripping his shoulders from behind.

"There's something wrong here, Lloyd." the chef whispered, and the brunet narrowed his eyes, listening and weighing the words, "This room... I'm getting a strange feeling from it. It doesn't quite smell right."

"What do you mean?" he questioned just as the room began to shake and rumble.

"Waaah! There's something happening!" Genis cried out in alarm. He and Colette had reached the altar ahead of the group, and a brilliant flash of light erupted from the metal ring before them, rising up in a rich red column. Lloyd and Kratos both raced up to them, grabbing on and pulling both boy and Chosen from the altar into the more open area in front of it.

From the light, three figures emerged, large and lithe and shaped very much like beasts of some kind. As they stepped forward, snarling and growling, Lloyd could see that they looked like giant cats covered in spikes and flames. What was this?! Why were these big monsters coming out of the seal?!

"The Chosen must defeat the guardians of the seal in order to prove herself and break the seal." Kratos declared, sword unsheathing as Colette nodded and swallowed hard, pulling out her chakrams, "These are Ktugach and its spawn, Ktugachlings. Beware their claws and speed."

"Are you crazy?! We gotta fight **these** things to break the seal?!" Lloyd blurted out, whipping out his dual swords, "Oh man! Genis, Professor Sage, can you keep up the water magic and healing spells?! This looks like it's gonna hurt a lot!"

"Just remember you have _Guardian_ for defensive measures!" Raine called back as she took her position as far from the stalking creatures as possible, "I can use _Photon_ to strike from back here as well! Adam, can you dispel their magic if these creatures attempt anything?"

The Wonder Chef stood by the wall, Wonder Fork in hand and trained on the three big cats. "I'll do my best, Miss Sage! Lloyd, Colette! Please be careful!" he replied.

The monsters lunged at that moment, teeth bared and claws outstretched, ready to try tearing into the golden-haired Chosen. She raced out of the way, flicking her chakrams as she moved to send them whirling through the air and slicing across the biggest one's snout. The smaller two cats, the Ktugachlings, snarled and crouched in place, circles of glowing red light blooming underneath them in concert with the blue and white ones beneath Genis and Raine. Kratos slashed his sword against the Ktugach's side, jumping back to give Lloyd the chance to run in and rapidly thrust his blades into the opened wound.

"Ha! Take this! _Sword Rain!_" he cheered and yelped as he was yanked back before the monster could turn on him and lash out with its claws.

"Stay moving! If you stand still, you'll only get yourself killed!" Kratos barked at him, letting go of his collar to run back in and provide a distraction so Colette could regain her chakrams and make another strike.

"They're almost done casting!" Genis cried after unleashing his _Aqua Edge_ to help Kratos against the Ktugach, "Adam! What are you doing?!"

The chef had hesitated, concern plain on his face. Lloyd spared him a worried glance. Why was he hesitating? It was kind of cool that he could stop enemy magic, like Genis had said he did with Botta, but why wasn't he doing it now?

"R-right! Here goes!" Adam exclaimed and brandished the fork at one of the Ktugachlings, determined expression taking the place of his earlier concern. The circle of red light beneath the monster flickered and vanished, and the fork in Adam's hands rippled with red light, taking on a faint sheen for a split second. "U-ugh!" The blonde wilted suddenly, sweat breaking out on his face. He shook his head and straightened, one hand reaching into his pack and digging around for something.

"Lloyd! Pay attention!" Kratos yelled again, pulling him aside just as a massive paw swiped at him, the claws grazing Lloyd's arm. He hissed in pain and darted aside, looking for another opening to attack while Raine worked on sending out healing magic, Genis running out the way of the fireballs sent after him by the second small beast. Why hadn't Adam stopped that spell too?

Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.

* * *

"Sis! Adam can't dispel too much magic!" Genis told the older half-elf as he readied another blast of _Aqua Edge_. "It hurts him in some way!"

"I know, but if he repeats the symptoms you told me about in the desert, I may have a better understanding of what could be the true cause." Raine replied and lifted her staff after a quick chanting, "_First Aid!_ Lloyd, be careful! Colette, stay out of its range!" She spotted both smaller beasts start summoning up mana for spells again. "Adam! They're both casting! Dispel the two magic attacks!"

"**Both** of them?!" Adam cried in dismay. He pulled a small glass jar from his bag, glanced at its label, then pulled his arm back, "Kratos, Lloyd, Colette! Get away from the big one!"

In unison, the three members of the party closest to the giant, snarling beast turned and dashed away. Adam hurled the jar at the Ktugach and it shattered almost explosively, white powder covering the creature. It shrieked in pain, flailing and turning in place. The chef flinched, looking almost regretful, then braced the fork in both hands again, pointing the prongs at the smaller two monsters. They both screeched and the mana circles beneath them vanished, as if swept away by nonexistent wind.

"Nngh!" Adam fell back against the wall, eyes closing as he let the fork drop from his hands. Genis whimpered softly. No way was he going to be able to do anything else now. He let loose his blast of _Aqua Edge_ and aimed the discs at the two smaller cats, yelling out in childish fury. The water splashed up against them like liquid blades and they finally fell under the onslaught, crying out and hissing as they collapsed and went still.

"Now, Colette!" Lloyd cried, blades buried into the Ktugach's right side. Kratos mirrored him on the left, the two of them struggling to hold the beast in place.

_"Ray Thrust!"_ the Chosen declared, spinning her chakrams at the guardian of the seal. The rings of metal cut through the air, slicing into the creature's neck, and both Lloyd and Kratos jumped back before the white powder that clung to its body could be shaken off onto them. The beast fell at last, its flames going out, and all three monsters faded away into nothing, leaving only the scattered remnants of white powder behind.

"What is this?" Lloyd wondered aloud, gazing at the powder on the floor. Kratos knelt to touch fingers to it, then brought them up to lick once.

"Salt. It aggravated the Ktugach's wounds and prevented it from concentrating. Otherwise, it would have begun casting magic as well." the mercenary deduced and stood up in time for them all to watch steam gush out from the altar, the metal ring lifting straight up, supported by metal columns. Within the opened shaft, a field of red light shone, and a strange figure cloaked in shadow appeared in its depths for a moment. A shimmering red ball of mana formed before it and then the ring sank down with a mechanical hiss, leaving the mana sphere floating above the altar. A deep voice began speaking to them from everywhere and nowhere at once.

Genis didn't care about hearing Remial again. He and Raine hurried over to the blonde that leaned back against the wall, eager to see if he was all right or needed help. Adam just lifted his hands to stop them, opening his eyes to give them wary looks.

"I'm... fine..." he whispered, "I'll be okay." He pushed himself away from the wall and picked up the fork carefully, then walked away with an unsteady gait. The Sage siblings watched him go with concerned looks on their faces.

"Raine..." Genis murmured almost insistently and his sister nodded.

"Yes, Genis, I saw it. His face was flushed, and he was sweating a great deal. His eyes are far too bright. But these are not the same symptoms as what happened in the Desian base." she pointed out softly, "Nevertheless, it _is_ worrisome."

* * *

Colette was following those disembodied commands to go to the altar and make her prayers. Adam _couldn't_ let that happen. Ignoring Kratos's subtle glare boring into the back of his head, he staggered forward, almost stumbling, and managed to grab onto Colette's hand.

"Don't do it!" he urged softly. She turned wide blue eyes on him, concern and confusion in their depths. "You don't have to do it this way. There's got to be another way to help Sylvarant without..."

"I'll be fine, I promise!" Colette chirped brightly, patting his hand as if he were a simple little child, "This is my duty as the Chosen."

"But...!" Adam protested helplessly, his hand falling away as the girl pulled herself free and took the last few steps to the altar, head bowing as she began her prayer.

"Oh Goddess Martel, great protector and nurturer of the earth. Grant me thy strength!" she intoned. The altar lit up with a soft white glow, and the red sphere of mana broke apart, diffusing and disappearing into the air. Once it was gone, an angel dressed in green robes and bearing white feathered wings appeared in its place, hovering high above them all. Adam swallowed hard, backing away a few steps.

An angel, one of the minions of Cruxis; he wished he'd known sooner that another of them would show up. Then he would have had the chance to hide himself. He blinked when Kratos smoothly moved forward and placed himself before the young chef, his taller figure shielding him rather well. Lloyd, Colette and Genis didn't notice, their eyes gazing up at the angel in awe.

"Colette, my dear daughter. You have done well." the angel purred. Maybe it was trying to sound noble and majestic, but Adam wasn't buying any of its lies.

Ugh, so hot. Adam closed his eyes again, trying to breath evenly. He knew he was taking a risk using the Wonder Fork on those fire monsters, but between using food in battle, and stunning monsters with the frying pan, using the fork's abilities to drain enemy spells was the one truly useful thing he could do to help. If only he didn't have to pay these kinds of penalties for it.

The angel finished talking, and Adam opened his eyes in time to see glowing spheres of mana swirl down and enter Colette's body. "N-no..." he protested again, weakly, helplessly. There was nothing he could do now; she'd begun her transformation. Bursts of pink erupted from her back and the group gasped at seeing the blonde girl rise up on glowing pink wings of mana. The chef gazed up at her sadly, still trying to keep himself steady.

"The angel transformation will not be without pain. Yet, it is but for one night. Be strong and endure." the angel, Remial as Colette called him, told her.

"I humbly accept this trial." she returned and Adam wanted nothing more than to jump the Cruxian angel and clock him over the head with his frying pan. How could they keep doing this to innocent people? How could he wear such a blank mask and feel nothing about sending a sweet girl off to die?

He hissed softly as the surge of anger churned the fire mana still going through his body. He was burning, burning, from the inside out. Adam breathed out, forcing air out through his mouth, hoping no one noticed the tiny flash of flame that escaped with his breath.

The angel left after commanding them to go to the next seal and Colette happily showed off her new wings to Genis, flapping them to stir a breeze into his face as he laughed.

"That's amazing, Colette! You have wings now!" Lloyd exclaimed, smiling broadly at her. He turned to face Kratos and Raine. "So the next seal is across the sea! That means we get to sail on a ship!" he went on, full of excitement and cheer, "Hahaha! I can't wait! This is going to be great! Right, Adam?"

Surprised that anyone else remembered he was still there, the young Wonder Chef stepped out from behind Kratos, swallowing hard and putting on a small smile of his own. Better to keep what was happening under wraps; he didn't want them to fuss over him when they should all be focusing on protecting Colette. At least until he could figure out how to alert them to the lies that angel was feeding them without Kratos jumping to silence him.

"Y-yes, that sounds like it's going to be fun." he agreed, and silently thanked his own deity that Lloyd mistook flushed cheeks and bright eyes for boyish excitement as well. Raine gave him a wary glance, her hand lifted to her chin in thought.

"A ship... I wonder if any ships are sailing with the way things are right now. We may end up having to use a land-bridge." she mused aloud. Kratos gave a short nod.

"We should begin by heading to the coast to see if there are any ships available." he remarked evenly, "Failing that, we'll search for alternate routes." Lloyd grinned even wider, then turned to blink at Colette and Genis in surprise. They were still playing with her wings, making breezes and making them vanish and reappear.

"Okay, you two. We get it! Colette's got the most awesome wings ever. Enough already!" he called out laughingly. The two youngest members of the group turned to face them, the wings vanishing once again. With matching smiles they chimed together.

"Okay~!"

And despite feeling like he could faint at any moment, Adam couldn't help but smile at them. They really were kind and friendly people. He just **had** to do something to help save Colette. Just so she could keep smiling like that for many more years.


	5. Aftermath of the Seal

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

Getting out of the ruins was a lot easier than heading into them had been. Lloyd didn't know whether to be grateful to get away from the heat within them, or frustrated that they emerged into the heat of the desert. Hot, hot, hot; it was like they couldn't get away from it! He couldn't wait for night to fall. It was much cooler once the sun set and then it would be Adam's turn to cook dinner. He grinned, wondering what to ask for their meal as he led Colette and Genis down the steps of the ruins. Raine and Kratos walked behind them, and Adam insisted on staying at the very end for some reason.

"Let's see, maybe stew? Or curry? Beef curry..." Lloyd mused and turned his head to ask his friends for their opinion. He was glad he did so, for at that moment Colette simply collapsed onto the sandy flat stones of the ruins, her breathing uneven and shallow. "Colette!" He was at her side in an instant. "Colette, are you okay?" He helped her sit up, watching worriedly as she gazed at him with unfocused eyes.

"I'm... fine..." she forced her voice to be steady, whisper-soft and frail. All the color was gone from her face. It was frightening to see. Genis hurried to her as well, almost in hysterics.

"You don't look fine at all! Your face is completely white!" he cried and looked up at his sister as Raine knelt to give the girl a quick examination, cupping her face in her hands. "It's all my fault, Raine! I got carried away and kept making her use her wings and she'd only just gotten them and...!" Lloyd put his hands on the smaller boy's shoulders, trying to calm him.

"Easy, Genis. I don't think that's what did this to her." he assured his best friend and looking to their teacher for further reassurance.

"This doesn't look good. Her lips are turning purple." Raine murmured seriously, "We must get her to a doctor in the city immediately." A thud sounded nearby and Lloyd lifted his head, looking over Colette and Raine to see what made that sound.

Adam had collapsed as well, laying limp on the foundation of the ruins just before the steps. Kratos had turned back out of surprise and now moved to kneel next to the blonde.

"Oh, no, not Adam too!" Lloyd murmured, hurrying over to join the auburn-haired mercenary. Kratos stood, apparently deciding that the chef wasn't his problem, and headed down the stairs to talk to Raine. Lloyd shot him a glare, then went back to trying to pull Adam to a sitting position, much like he had with Colette.

It was harder than with her. The other boy seemed too slack, unable to even hold his head up, and was struggling to breathe, face covered in sweat. If he couldn't sit up, it'd be impossible to get him to stand or walk. Lloyd looked over at the others. Raine and Kratos seemed like they were just finishing an argument, Genis was holding Colette's hands and rubbing them comfortingly as she got to her feet unsteadily, and Colette herself...

She looked back over her shoulder at him, concern and apology written all over her face, even as a flicker of something else played through her dull eyes, gone too fast for Lloyd to identify.

"C'mon, Adam. Professor Sage is gonna be able to help you. You awake, man?" the brunet huffed out, wrapping one arm around the boy's shoulders and looping the other under his knees.

"...salt... cup... sugar..." Adam moaned almost intelligibly, wheezing out a gasp when Lloyd stood, lifting him off the ground.

"Professor Sage! What's wrong with them?" the dual swordsman cried in alarm as he jogged over to the group. Genis and Kratos were quickly setting up a campsite in a more easily defended part of the ruins, Raine kneeling by a resting Colette. She looked up at him as Lloyd stopped near them and carefully set the Wonder Chef down beside the blonde girl.

"Ah, Lloyd. Colette seems to be suffering through the trial of the angel transformation process." Raine explained, holding out a container of water for Colette to sip from, "We're going to stay here for a night to let her rest."

"And Adam?" Lloyd pressed. Raine pursed her mouth and moved to check on the other blonde, giving him a chance to kneel by Colette and hold the water-pouch in her place.

"I'm... okay. I'll be fine after a little rest." Colette whispered, trying to reassure him as she managed a tremulous smile, "I'm sorry to cause so much trouble." Lloyd mirrored the weak grin.

"Don't apologize for that, you dork." he told her with a chuckle, "It's not like you could help it. You were suddenly turned into an angel." He helped her drink a little more water and she sighed tiredly.

"You're right. I'm sorry." she murmured. Beside her, Raine hissed in alarm, hands quickly moving to unbutton Adam's coat. Lloyd half-rose with a start, eyes wide.

"Professor Sage? What are you _doing_?" he blurted out, face reddening.

"He's burning up, Lloyd. This is a very dangerous fever." she told him and raised her head to look him in the eye, "Go get Genis and Kratos, tell them both to get as much water as they can spare from our supplies and soak whatever fabrics possible. We need to break this fever, now!"

Lloyd scrambled to get to the other two of their group, heart racing in his panic. Fever? How did Adam get a _fever_? He wasn't sick at all when they went into the ruins and he hadn't seemed sick when they left...

His breath caught as he remembered the talk in the altar room, how he had been excited about a possible sailing trip and thought Adam had the same enthusiasm, what with his eyes being so shiny and bright. But that was the sign of a fever, wasn't it?

"Stupid, stupid, stupid. How could I **be** this stupid?" he berated himself. Somehow, he blamed himself for not seeing all this. Two of his friends, downed by illness, and he was too blinded by the promise of adventure to see the warning signs.

.

The campfire crackled, empty bowls of tofu curry sat in a small pile nearby. The night sky was filled with glittering stars and all was quiet and fairly peaceful.

After the chaos of earlier with Colette needing a comfortable place to rest because of her angel trial and the feeling of wrongness in helping Professor Sage undress Adam to cool him down, Lloyd was glad to have some calm now to quiet his thoughts and relax. He sat on a fallen pillar a short distance from the group, head resting on one hand, his fingers buried in his hair. The day had started so well, too; how had it all fallen apart like this so fast?

He grunted when he heard someone take a seat beside him and turned his head just enough to identify his companion. Deep purple cloak and clothes... Kratos. Lloyd sighed and turned back away. He really didn't want to deal with him now.

"Your Exsphere has an unusual color." the mercenary remarked in that same even tone that never really let Lloyd know what the man was thinking or feeling. He blinked, caught off guard by the question, and lifted his head to look at the older man before checking his left hand, considering the stone that rested in its mount.

"Huh. I never really paid much attention to it, but you're right. It _does_ seem a little different from yours and the others." he returned and sat up a little straighter, taking more interest in the mercenary, "By the way, why do _you_ have an Exsphere?" Kratos lifted his hand, gazing at his own Exsphere with what looked like disinterest.

"I took it from a Desian." he replied coolly, "I'd heard that Desians force the humans at the ranch to make them." Lloyd nodded slowly, brows furrowing together in thought.

_'So, that's why Marble had an Exsphere, too...'_

"Is it all right if I ask you something as well?" Kratos ventured, breaking into Lloyd's thoughts. The brunet looked up in surprise and tilted his head. The other man had a kind of cautious look to him, like he wasn't sure what he was doing.

"Sure... go ahead." he returned with a small nod. The mercenary paused, as though tracing his thoughts first before he asked his question.

"Why were you raised by a dwarf?" he finally inquired. Lloyd raised an eyebrow. Why would asking that make Kratos think twice about it? Weird.

"Dad found me collapsed in the woods with Mom and Noishe." he began explaining, looking forward as he recalled the events, trying to rein in his anger, "Although what really happened was that we were attacked by Desians... and they killed my mom." His hands clenched, then slowly relaxed. He didn't need to be riled up right now; Colette and Adam were depending on them all to pull through the night safely.

"...I see." Kratos murmured softly, "From the sound of it, I take it your father isn't alive either?" Lloyd wrapped one fist with the other hand, squeezing them tightly, then relaxing again.

"...Probably not." he agreed in a small voice. They sat in awkward silence for a few moments, listening to the crackle and pop of the campfire behind them.

"So the Desians are responsible for the deaths of your parents..." Kratos murmured as if testing the sentence out. He hummed a bit. "Your life has been completely torn apart by them." he summed up. Lloyd gave him an incredulous look, so he went on. "Your mother was killed and then you were chased out of your village. All of that was the fault of the Desians, correct?" he clarified.

"Oh..." Lloyd murmured, sounding a bit crestfallen as he leaned over and rested his chin on his hands, "I guess you're right."

"People are... hopelessly powerless..." Kratos whispered, and he sounded strangely lost and small, such a mismatch of tone that Lloyd suddenly felt himself get riled up on his behalf. He jerked upright and gave the older man a stern look.

"Yes, they are. But you can't blame others for that weakness." the brunet told him with all the conviction he had, "That's why I'm going to get stronger. I'm going to become powerful and defeat the Desians!" Kratos only gazed at him, as though weighing his words and searching them for any other meaning. Finally, he gazed ahead, searching the horizon.

"I see." he murmured, "Then, no matter what awaits ahead, you must not forget that determination." Lloyd tilted his head curiously, watching him swallow. "And don't let Adam forget it as well."

The brunet frowned. "We won't." he returned shortly and got up, "I'm gonna go check on everyone." Kratos didn't say anything, just kept looking forward, so Lloyd went ahead and left him alone, going over to see Raine and find out how Colette and Adam were doing.

* * *

"It seems Colette is doing much better now." Raine sighed softly as she turned a page in her book, her pen scratching out letters on the paper, "Adam is still asleep, but his fever's broken, so he's no longer in any immediate danger." Lloyd sagged in relief, a weak smile forming on his face.

"That's great news." he murmured and looked towards the blonde girl fiddling with her bowl of food, "I guess becoming an angel is pretty rough." Raine followed his gaze and nodded absently.

"Yes, I wonder if her biological structure is changing." she mused aloud and caught Lloyd's blank expression. She sighed again, "In other words, I wonder if she is becoming a different life form." Lloyd's gaze sharpened, surprising her.

"Colette is Colette. I don't see how she's any different now that she's got wings." he remarked with a shrug. Raine's expression softened and she smiled a little.

"...Yes, you're right. You always point out the truth." she murmured and Lloyd blushed, stammering nervously. She chuckled, one hand drifting down to run fingers through Genis's hair. Her little brother had finally fallen asleep after exhausting himself with self-berating, worry and cooking. He had still thought it was his fault Colette had collapsed until the trial was explained to him, and then fussed over the lack of ingredients to make a proper tofu curry for dinner. He had really wanted it to be just right in hopes that it would somehow cure Adam.

The Wonder Chef, however, had just been too weak to eat.

"We'll be all right, Lloyd." Raine murmured, watching his eyes drift towards the two blondes repeatedly, "I know how much you want to check on them. Go ahead." She lifted her pen to point at him sternly. "Just don't push them. They still need a lot of rest." she added and then sent him off so she could go back to her notes.

After what Genis told her happened in the Desian base, and what she witnessed herself here in the Seal of Fire, Raine had the beginnings of a theory as to what was happening to the young chef traveling with them. Unfortunately, she needed more data to be able to confirm her theory, and that required another episode. The danger present in that case was that another episode may just prove itself to be truly fatal.

Raine's eyes lowered, and her hand continued to run through her brother's hair. Somehow, she had to find a way to make her healing arts work on curing something like this.

* * *

Colette looked up from her bowl when she noticed Lloyd come up and kneel beside her with a small smile on his face. He held something cupped in his hands.

"I'd almost forgotten again, but then I thought you needed cheering up, so I remembered it again." he rushed through his words nervously, "So, even though it's kind of late, here's your birthday present..." He opened his hands to give her the necklace he'd been working on and Colette leaned forward to take a look.

The charm had a large crack in it, marring the delicate designs. Her face fell a little.

"Oh no... it's broken." she murmured sadly and Lloyd panicked, lifting it to take a closer look himself in dismay.

"Ah! I wonder when that happened?" he exclaimed softly, "I'm sorry, Colette, but I promise I'll make you a new one. It'll be even better than this one, too!" She managed a weak smile, warmth filling her body at his kindness.

"Thanks," she returned, "and... I'm sorry I keep causing trouble for you." She wondered why she couldn't be as graceful and composed as Professor Sage, or as coordinated and noble as Spiritua. She was the Chosen; why did she have to be so clumsy and a burden on everyone else? Lloyd shook his head.

"Don't worry about it." he told her and then took a peek at her still full bowl of curry. Concern flashed across his face. "You haven't really eaten much, have you? Are you still feeling sick?" Colette stirred the meal again, feeling a bit confused and worried herself.

"No, I'm fine." she reassured her friend, "I just... don't seem to have much of an... appetite." She had tried to eat, but the food seemed to lack much taste and part of her felt indifferent to the concept of eating. As though it wasn't necessary for her anymore. She'd tried to ignore it and swallowed down a few bites, but it felt somehow _wrong_ to eat anything now. With a sigh, Colette set the bowl aside, her interest in food almost completely gone. "I'll try to eat later, okay?"

Lloyd nodded, seeming to accept that answer. Colette felt strangely disappointed. She kind of expected him to urge her a little more strongly to try to eat. Then Professor Sage would scold him, Genis would tease him, he'd get flustered and she'd giggle at the warmth and friendship they all had. It was comforting and it always made her feel like she was bathed in a loving light that made her feel better about what she was going to do at the end of her journey.

But she wasn't the only one who'd gotten sick suddenly, and she mentally scolded herself for her selfish desire as she got to her feet. Lloyd rose with her, alarmed.

"H-hey! Shouldn't you get some more rest? Are you okay to be moving around?" he asked her worriedly. She just smiled at him, sweet as could be.

"I'm just going to go for a little walk. The fresh air might help me." she told him and found herself coughing a bit as her stomach seemed to flip. It really didn't seem to like the fact that she'd forced herself to eat. Lloyd gave her an uncertain look.

"Would you like me to come along?" he asked and Colette shook her head, still smiling.

"No, that's okay. I'll be fine by myself. Thanks so much for asking." she replied honestly. That was more like him, but still... "Besides, I don't want to take all your attention. I'm sure Adam would like it if you visited him too." She kept up her cheerful front, hands clasping together and head tilting _just_ so.

Lloyd still looked a bit dubious, but he finally smiled and nodded. "All right then. Be careful, okay?" he told her, then began walking away, glancing back over his shoulder once more to be sure she really wanted him to go. Colette simply smiled and nodded before heading in another direction.

She could feel something was happening to her, and it confused and frightened her. She didn't want anyone else to worry, especially Lloyd, so she would go and think it over on her own. The answer had to be somewhere within her; she would pray and hope for guidance.

* * *

As Lloyd drew close to the simple shelter where the chef rested, he thought over what he could possibly say to him. After giving Genis and Kratos Professor Sage's orders, he grabbed for a thin sheet from his travel pack, part of the bedding he kept on hand, and tied it between a couple of scrawny palm trees, weighing down the other corners by stabbing them into the earth with his swords. If Professor Sage was going to insist on stripping down his friend, the least Lloyd could do was offer some amount of privacy.

She had seen what he'd done, and quickly had him help move Adam behind the shelter, then help with the rest of the undressing. Kratos brought in the water-soaked sheets and smaller cloths, handing them off to the teacher before retreating to stand guard over Colette with Genis. In short order, Lloyd and Raine where both kneeling by a chef completely covered over with sopping wet sheets, cool compresses resting over his forehead. Adam's traveling pack, clothes and giant fork were set aside neatly, and the blonde seemed to sleep uneasily.

That was the way he looked last Lloyd saw of him, and Raine had said his fever had broken, so he should be feeling a little better by now, right? The brunet hoped that was the case; it was kind of scary just how out of it Adam was only a few hours ago.

"Hey, Adam? Are you asleep?" Lloyd asked softly, face turning a slight shade of red as he peeked around the makeshift tent to check on him.

The bed was empty, blankets in disarray. Lloyd stared at the scene in shock and disbelief. His pack, clothes and fork were gone too! Panicked, he darted away and ran for Raine. "Professor Sage! Adam's gone! He's not there!" he blurted out, startling her and jolting Genis awake.

"That's impossible! I've had my eyes on that shelter all this time!" Raine cried in alarm, "There's no way he could have left it without me seeing him! And with his condition, he shouldn't even be able to move for another few hours!"

"He can if he was able to make something to heal himself." Genis pointed out worriedly, "You guys left his pack with him, right? He's the Wonder Chef, did you forget that already?!" The two Sage siblings got to their feet. "We have to look for him. He couldn't have gone too far." he decided and scampered off in one direction.

"Yes. Lloyd, look around the ruins and see if he is there. I'll go find Colette and see if he might be with her." Raine added and hurried in the direction Colette went. Lloyd nodded and began to run off, when he was stopped by the sound of Kratos's voice.

"Lloyd." The mercenary stood up from his seat and turned to look at dual swordsman with a strangely knowing gaze. "If you wish to find the Wonder Chef, remember this always. He is capable of the power of teleportation, but only to places he has seen or been to already." Lloyd blinked at him, eyes wide with surprise. "He disguises himself as objects that attempt to blend into his surroundings to protect himself. Search for those objects. For now, I believe he may have returned to the Seal of Fire." The brunet shifted his weight onto one leg, looking at him warily.

"What makes you so sure he's there?" he questioned cautiously.

"Humph. It's relatively safe and isolated, something this particular Wonder Chef seems to find comforting." Kratos huffed in an irritatingly sardonic tone. Lloyd growled softly, but nodded and then turned and raced for the ruins. As he ran, there was one little flicker of confusion that soon was swept away by his worry.

How did Kratos know so much about the Wonder Chef?

.

He had to run past a lot of the monsters that were still wandering the ruins, but Lloyd eventually made it to the disc that would teleport him into the altar room. He paused, just long enough to mumble a halfhearted prayer to Martel that Adam really was there, then took a deep breath and stepped onto the disc.

There was the slight disorientation that usually came from teleporting through the discs, and then it passed. Lloyd stepped away from the disc and blinked as he spotted the green-clad blonde with his back to the entrance.

"...and if you so much as **try** to take me back by force, I'll...!" Adam threatened angrily, then gasped and cut himself off, turning in place to stare at the brunet running up to him. "L-Lloyd! How did... how did you find me?" he exclaimed in surprise. Lloyd huffed for air upon reaching him.

"Everyone's running all over the place, looking for you! Kratos gave me a hint that you'd be here, but what **I** don't get is why you took off without _telling_ anyone!" he finally shouted, feeling relieved and angry all at once, "For Martel's sake, you were knocked out just a few hours ago by a killer fever! You're supposed to be resting! What if it came back and we weren't around to help you?!" Adam's face reddened as he glared back, hands tightening into fists.

"I am the _Wonder Chef_; I have recipes that can bring down fevers and restore normal body temperature! I'm just fine!" he yelled back, "What **I** don't get is why you thought it was a great idea to strip me when you **know** I **hate** being touched!" Growling, Lloyd shifted his weight onto one foot, as though subconsciously preparing for a fight.

"It's not like I _wanted_ to put you through that!" he retaliated. Good Goddess, why wasn't he **getting** this? And everyone called _him_ the stupid one... "I'm sorry you had to go through it, but I'm **not** sorry I helped save your life!" That seemed to go through the blonde's skull. Adam flinched, jerking back as he did.

The room was full of silence after that, hot and awkward and stressful. Lloyd tried to relax, pacing back and forth in an effort to relieve his tension. He gave the other boy some distance for both their sakes and shoved his hands into his pockets, head bent so he wouldn't have to keep glaring at his friend. The floor was still covered in salt, and it coated the soles of his boots as he trudged through it, back and forth.

Why didn't he get it? Lloyd just couldn't understand it. After fainting from that fever and scaring the daylights out of him too, and then running off -well, teleporting, but same thing- without a word to anyone about where he was going or how he was feeling, why didn't Adam understand why he was mad about it? A friend doesn't scare the holy hell out of another friend when he thinks they're ten minutes away from _dying_! Was he **that** out of touch with the world? Lloyd didn't care **how** great his cooking was, if he didn't know to warn a guy that he was gonna go running off into random ruins after barely recovering from killer fever then Adam was doing a pretty poor job of being _any_ kind of 'Wonder'!

"...I'm sorry." Adam finally murmured, startling Lloyd out of his rambling thoughts. The brunet looked up at him, blinking in the glow of lights from the altar at the end of the room. The blonde looked honestly miserable. "I can't get angry with you for using the kinds of medical treatments you know will help." he added, tracing designs onto the back of one hand with a fingertip, "I know I should start getting over that, but... one thing at a time, okay?" Lloyd didn't quite understand what he meant by that, but he felt himself relax at last.

"Just so long as you know that we were really worried about you, and you scared us when you just vanished without saying anything." he told the other boy and shifted his weight again, tapping his hand against his leg, "So, uh... who were you talking to when I came in?" He watched with one eyebrow raised as Adam flinched again.

"Nobody, really." he mumbled. Lloyd bent his head a little, trying to look into the blonde's eyes, but he kept glancing away. Didn't seem like he really wanted to talk about it. Maybe not yet, but Lloyd hoped that he would eventually earn enough of his trust to be told what was going on.

"Oh. Okay." he finally returned but made sure that his tone carried the message that he really didn't think it was nobody but he was gonna let it go for now. Adam looked a little grateful for that, giving him a weak smile. "Well, we should go back to camp and let everyone know you're okay. Might want to watch out; Professor Sage may just smack you for running off on her watch." Lloyd added and laughed at the dismayed expression on the blonde's face.

"She wouldn't!" he protested and sighed when Lloyd just grinned at him, "I suppose I'll just have to endure it. It's my own fault."

"Yeah, but maybe she'll go easy on you since you were sick a while ago." the brunet remarked and turned to walk back to the disc as Adam followed after him, "Come on. We're gonna have to run past the monsters to get out of here. I kind of forgot my swords outside in all the panicking."


	6. Return to Triet

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

They set off for Triet again the next day. Genis was excited to see both Colette and Adam looking much better. And the Wonder Chef had even rested a hand on his shoulder and thanked him for making the curry as best he could! Knowing that Adam didn't much like physical contact, just that bit of reaching out was plenty to be happy for. Colette was all smiles again, which was just icing on the cake.

Returning to Triet had been Lloyd and Kratos's idea, collectively. The mercenary had told them that getting to Palmacosta for more clues would mean having to pass through the Ossa Trail, and it was on the other side of the Triet Desert. A trek like that would be taxing on them unless they had enough provisions to make it over. Lloyd raised his voice then, suggesting they go back to Triet to shop. They'd gathered plenty of gald from the monsters and bandits they'd fought -and Genis had to wonder what kind of world they lived in where wild animals carried money in their jaws and guts- so it was no problem to stock up there.

Then he had to turn around and placate Adam, who'd gone sickly at the mention of killing people again, and was immediately pushed off for it. Lloyd continued walking in a huff for a while, forgetting the whole incident once it was time for a break and a meal.

Genis couldn't help but laugh at the friends he had. He was happy with them around. In this time and age where half-elves were persecuted, it was kind of sad but necessary to pretend to be full-blooded elves. He hoped his friends didn't find out otherwise; he'd hate to lose them all over something like that. He didn't want to hate them like he already hated the rest of the human race.

.

Around the campfire at night, just half a day away from Triet, he sat back to watch Lloyd work on a new necklace for Colette. The Chosen rested comfortably on several blankets spread on the sand for her, humming softly as she gazed almost sleepily into the fire. Not too far from her, Adam sat on his own bedding, glaring at the papers lying before him and gnawing on his pencil. Raine had officially declared him her new student -despite Adam's protests- and assigned him placement homework so she could evaluate the extent of his education and knowledge.

Then she told him that if he put anything down that looked like it was cooking related, she'd spank him. Adam had burned red the entire walk back to his spot in the campsite and Genis laughed until his sides hurt. Then his head hurt because Raine smacked him for laughing.

"Having trouble?" Genis asked, getting up to join the blonde chef and peer at his homework. He picked up a sheet and read it over, eyebrows lifting at the answers. They were neatly written and concise, with lots of thought going into answering each question thoroughly. Despite being someone trained for cooking, Adam knew a lot about other subjects. So what was he chomping his pencil over?

With a disgusted huff, Adam finally tossed down the sheet that was giving him issues. "That one. I can't answer anything on that sheet." he finally declared and folded his arms over his chest. Genis picked up the paper and looked over the questions. This part of the exam was in regards to Mithos the Hero, his journey to end the Kharlan War, and the religion set up to honor him and the Goddess Martel. Confused, Genis looked up at his friend and tilted his head.

"Why can't you answer them? Don't you know about Mithos the Hero?" he questioned, "If this is where you have trouble, Raine can start with..." The chef shook his head furiously.

"No. It's not that I don't know it. I do, I know quite a lot." he muttered and shot a quick glare over at Kratos before focusing it on the campfire, "I just don't agree with it. I can't give answers without being biased." Genis gaped at him. Why? How could he disagree with proven and known facts?

"But... but this is well-known history! There's artifacts and scriptures and documents that tell all about this! How can you disagree with world history?" he blurted out in astonishment. He hunched his shoulders as he soon realized that his outburst caught the attentions of everyone else in the group. Colette, Lloyd and Raine were giving him puzzled expressions, and Genis felt a little awkward. Then he noticed that Kratos's even glare wasn't on him, but set on Adam, as if waiting for him to say something wrong.

"Am I not allowed to disagree?" Adam returned slowly, carefully, and Genis glanced up to see the chef was matching Kratos's glare, "It's my opinion that your history as you define it is wrong, but that's just my opinion. It's right to me, wrong to you, and that's all there is to it." He reached down, gathered the rest of the papers and tapped them until they were neatly stacked so he could put them away. "Sorry, Genis, but I'm pretty tired. I think I'm going to go to sleep now." he added softly, "Could you take that part of the exam back to Miss Sage and let her know I won't be finishing it?"

Genis walked back to Raine with the paper in hand, looking back over his shoulder worriedly. The blonde had turned his back on them, wrapping himself up in his cape for a blanket and slipping into a doze. He seemed so firm about what he said, like he really knew what he was saying but was holding back. It was a little disappointing that Adam didn't like history so much -but he knew what the carvings on the wall in the Seal of Fire meant- but then Lloyd didn't like _anything_ that required a lot of concentration unless he had a real interest in it, so it shouldn't be so much of a let-down. Everyone was entitled to a subject they didn't like. The Wonder Chef was no exception.

* * *

They arrived in Triet late the next day, tired, dirty, and in generally foul moods. Colette was the exception, still cheerful and upbeat, which somehow managed to aggravate the rest of the group but not enough to snap, thankfully. Lloyd rubbed at his hair, grimacing as sand sifted out. He still couldn't explain how that ended up there. Beside him, Adam looked equal parts ill and furious, the first time Lloyd had seen that kind of expression on his face. For some reason, he thought it was kind of against nature to have a pissed off Wonder Chef; Adam's face didn't suit the expressions.

The reason behind it made no sense, at least in Lloyd's head, so he thought back over what happened earlier. Just before they got to Triet, some bandits jumped them and tried to kidnap Colette, Raine and Adam. From the leering grins on their faces, it was pretty easy to figure out why they had grabbed the girls, but what Lloyd couldn't get was why they grabbed the chef. Were they really hungry too?

Anyway, he and Kratos jumped into action, racing at them with swords drawn as Genis kicked into gear with brotherly fury, casting fireballs and water spells alternately to keep the bandits jumping around in panic. Raine got herself free by stomping on the bare feet of her captor, Colette tripped backwards and knocked out hers, and the moment his own captor got distracted by an incoming _Demon Fang_, Adam lashed out with his frying pan, breaking the man's nose and knocking him out as well.

Lloyd and Kratos finished off the bandits with a pair of sword thrusts on the last one that somehow turned into a cross thrust which made him smile for a short bit before returning to a thin grim line. He checked on everyone, just to be sure they were all safe, with Raine and Colette assuring him they were just fine. When he came to Adam, the blonde was shaking in a fury and looking just as sickened as Raine had looked.

"They said they couldn't wait to try some 'twin action'! H-how dare they?" he fumed and then stomped off towards the town gate, "The sooner I can bathe, the better!" He'd been so angry, he hadn't even noticed that the bodies of the bandits were littering the ground. Or maybe the ill look on his face was from that but he was just too mad to freeze up?

"I'm exhausted! Let's get to the inn so we can rest before we go shop." Genis declared and ran ahead of them to reach it first. Raine scowled slightly.

"Genis! You're going to trip!" she warned, "Slow down!" Genis only ran on, half-turning to wave at them to hurry and follow. A second later, he tripped and landed flat on his face. Raine immediately ran over to him as Lloyd tried to choke back a laugh, one hand up to hide the smile on his face. Adam glanced over at him and finally seemed to relax, managing a conspiratorial grin. The group hurried over to see if the other boy was okay and caught onto the rest of Raine's lecture. "There, you see? You trip easily, so you need to calm down and control yourself a little more!"

She scolded and fussed over Genis a bit more before she took him by the hand and pretty much dragged him to the inn herself. The rest of the group followed and Lloyd turned in the direction of the stables, leading Noishe there for his own rest and drink of water. Absently, he scratched at his head, making a face at the sand _still_ falling out.

A bath was starting to sound like a good idea. Lloyd wondered how long it would be before Adam was out; he liked using up a lot of hot water, even though they were in a desert. **Everything** was hot! And what was up with him getting mad about 'twin action'? What did that mean?

"I thought I'd find you here." Kratos remarked evenly, walking into the stall and jolting Lloyd from his thoughts, "We've already paid for rooms for the night. What are you doing out here?"

"Ah, Kratos." the brunet greeted, not putting much effort into it. He was disliking the guy less, though he still thought him kind of a jerk. But at least the mercenary seemed to have some feeling in him; why else would he come out looking for him? "I was just getting Noishe into some shade." Lloyd explained and had a sudden idea. Why not ask Kratos what Adam meant by 'twin action'? He's been all over the place, so he should know, right? So, he asked.

Kratos just stared at him, eyes narrowing as he leaned forward slightly. Lloyd tensed, looking around nervously. Was it something bad? What did he say?

"I will pretend you did not just say that to me." the mercenary finally said, leaning back and stepping away from him, "But it **is** surprising you have not noticed it yet. It's quite obvious, Lloyd."

"Huh?" Lloyd murmured blankly, "Uh, I don't get what you're saying." Kratos gave him a pitying look and the dual swordsman glared back, looking a little flustered, "Wh-what?"

"The Chosen and the Wonder Chef... have you not seen how very similar they are in appearance? That makes them easily mistaken for being twins." the older man explained, "To those who do not know them, it can be assumed that Adam is the Chosen's brother."

"Oh. Really? But, they're not really alike." Lloyd pointed out in confusion, "But I guess it could happen." He looked out of the stable and brightened. "Ah, speaking of Adam, he just left the inn!" Darting past Kratos, Lloyd ran for the building himself. "I call the bath next!"

* * *

When night fell and everyone was getting ready for bed, Lloyd startled the young chef by plopping himself down onto the other boy's bed with a wide grin. Adam blinked at him, confused, before settling for a halfhearted glare.

"What are you doing? This is the same room we were in last time; you have your own bed." the blonde muttered.

"I'm working on Colette's necklace and you need to work on getting over that whole touching thing." Lloyd returned as though it were obvious and settled himself into a cross-legged position, the necklace in his hands. Adam twitched uncomfortably as Lloyd's knee bumped against his own and just touched there, a constant contact. He glared at them, then up at Lloyd, who seemed to be completely absorbed in working the tiny links of the thin chain.

After a moment of being ignored, Adam sighed and reached into his pack, pulling out the placement homework and focusing on that. Fine, two could play that game. If Lloyd wanted to pretend he wasn't in the chef's personal space, then Adam could very well do the same. He answered several more questions, lulled into the mundanity of schoolwork -so different from the training exams he was given in his childhood-, and so found himself surprised again when Lloyd yawned loudly.

He looked up from the stack of papers to see what was going on and blinked when Lloyd just smiled at him sleepily, the hand bearing his Exsphere rubbing lazily at one eye. "I'm getting tired, so I'm going to go to bed. And look," the brunet remarked, pointing at where their knees had touched, "we've been like that the whole time and you haven't gotten jumpy. That's not too bad, huh?" Adam didn't know what to say, just stared at his leg like it had somehow betrayed him, then watched Lloyd bounce off and walk to his own bed, dressing down for the night. "Goodnight, Adam."

"Goodnight, Lloyd." the chef returned absently, tilting his head in thought. He really had forgotten about the touch. That was surprising. He put away the homework and sighed to himself, lying back as he thought over the impromptu meeting he had with his abandoned guards in the Triet marketplace earlier. _They_ gave him orders to return to the base and prepare to teleport to Tethe'alla; _he_ threw sticky rice balls at them until they couldn't move to stop him or call for help.

They'd probably be free by noon tomorrow, provided the fattest of them didn't start eating them loose.

* * *

In the morning, Kratos and Raine managed to talk a traveling merchant into letting them ride along with him on a trip to Izoold. The merchant had a cart of dried fruits and vegetables that he was taking through the Ossa Trail and happily agreed to let the Chosen and her group ride in the cart with the goods. So with the sun barely peeking up over the horizon, Raine hurriedly bustled everyone out of the inn and onto the cart. Adam dragged his feet, still half-asleep, and fairly crawled into place on the cart, snuggling down among the musty cloth sacks of dried produce and dozing off again.

Genis watched Lloyd drag himself into place as well, dropping Adam's travel pack and Wonder Fork next to his own things. The brunet looked groggy and annoyed, even as he helped Colette get on board, hands holding hers while she stepped over sacks and crates. She looked a bit sleepy herself; Raine had woken them all up much earlier than usual. Only she and Kratos looked anywhere near coherent.

The half-elf tilted his head thoughtfully as he watched Lloyd try to find a comfortable place for Colette to go back to sleep. "Adam's found a good spot; how about just taking some space beside him?" he suggested and grinned up at Lloyd, "Then we can see the look on his face when he wakes up and sees her there."

"Aw, Genis, and you said it wouldn't be a good idea to scare off the Wonder Chef before he finished teaching us recipes." Lloyd teased back, then turned to Colette, who was looking a little concerned despite her drowsiness, "No, it's okay, Colette. He won't mind, I bet." He gestured to Genis to help him and the two of them together shifted the produce sacks enough to create a second comfortable space without waking the other blonde.

"Are you sure Adam won't mind?" Colette asked softly, even as she sat down and then curled up beside him. Genis shook his head.

"He'll be fine. Probably." he told her as he dug out a blanket from one of the packs and draped it over the girl, "He can't exactly get upset with you, knowing how important you are to all of us." Colette nodded sleepily and closed her eyes. Genis sat back on his own produce sack, resting comfortably against some crates. Lloyd did the same, looking at the two sleeping blondes with an odd expression. "Lloyd?" Genis called his name questioningly, wondering what he could be thinking.

It was good that the two of them were close enough friends that the brunet understood him with just that. "Kratos was right. They **do** look alike, don't they, Genis?" Lloyd remarked quietly, "Like we have two Chosens." Genis huffed, drifting closer to sleep.

"That's just a coincidence, Lloyd. There's no way Adam could be related to Colette; they have different names and he didn't recognize her name when you told him in Triet." he retorted, "It's no big deal if they look similar; you'd still have to be an idiot to confuse Adam for Colette." He managed a smile at Lloyd's indignant face, then closed his own eyes, fading back into dreamless sleep.

.

Later in the day, Genis and Lloyd were jolted awake by Adam's cry of alarm. Raine and Kratos, both seated closer to the end of the cart, turned to give them all startled and unamused looks, respectively. Genis rubbed at his eyes and glared sleepily at the two blondes before realizing what happened, and then burst into laughter.

Adam had woken up to feel the Chosen curled against his back, her hands clutching his sleeves in her sleep, face buried in his cape, and immediately stiffened with a cry. Eyes wide and face pale, his frightened expression made Genis giggle and snort behind his hands. Lloyd sighed and rolled his eyes, even as he smiled, then carefully moved to sit by the chef without falling over as the cart plodded along.

"It's not that bad!" he told the other boy brightly, "You were asleep all this time with Colette beside you and nothing bad happened." He kept his grin on even as Adam leveled a frustrated glare at him. Eventually, Colette got up on her own and the chef breathed a little easier and Genis decided to watch the landscape pass them by, sitting on a crate and folding his arms over the side of the cart. Mostly he did this because Adam was sitting there as well, gazing out at the wide expanse of sand and cacti and scraggly trees.

Lloyd had whispered to him what he was trying to do, get the chef used to being touched and other types of physical contact, so the half-elf subtly set himself up to bump elbows with the other blonde. Adam made a small sound of protest, trying to pull back, but Genis shifted again to keep the contact there and he eventually gave up. Kratos kept watch from his seat at the end of the cart, Noishe trotted alongside it with his tongue hanging out his mouth, and Raine had moved to sit up front with the merchant, discussing the possible situations they might encounter once over the mountains.

It would take them about a week to get to the Ossa Trail, maybe less if the trip wasn't held up by bandits and monsters. Genis spent most of that time reading what few books he'd brought with him, talking with Colette about her wings and what they felt like, watching Lloyd work slowly and steadily on Colette's necklace, and desert-gazing with Adam. His sister, loving though she was, fussed over Colette's health most of her time on that cart, and Kratos was either keeping watch or dozing while sitting against a barrel of water. Not much fun there.

"Have you ever been to Izoold?" Genis asked of the young chef as they neared the Ossa Trail, desert slowly giving way to greener patches and stronger trees. Adam narrowed his eyes in consideration as the two of them watched the landscape change. Genis felt rather proud of himself that he was able to get the blonde used enough to rubbing elbows that he could plop into place, give him a small shoulder bump to let him know he was there, and Adam would just nod a bit to acknowledge him.

"Not really. I've seen pictures of it, but I never really went there." the chef replied, "If I hadn't joined the Chosen's group, I probably would have been there by myself by now." He shrugged. "It doesn't matter now. I'll be there soon anyway, and I'll be traveling with all of you." he added and smiled over at Genis, "That's much better, don't you think?"

"Heh heh heh, yeah!" the half-elf laughed in agreement. The cart came to a stop just before the path leading through the mountains and Raine turned in her seat to call back to the group.

"We're going to have to walk from here on." she told them, "The Ossa Trail is divided into two paths, one for travelers on foot and the other for merchants and caravans. Since, legally, we are not part of the merchant's group, we aren't allowed to ride through the rest of the trip."

"Aw man, so we have to walk again?" Lloyd groaned as Kratos gathered up his things and jumped down from the cart.

"We've ridden through the desert in relative comfort, Lloyd. Traveling by foot will strengthen you." the mercenary told him coolly, "Unless you wish to grow soft and get yourself killed." The brunet made a face at him, pulling on his own stuff and climbing out of the cart.

"Geez, you make it sound like if I don't do everything just like **you**, I'm gonna end up dead from the first thing that hits me." he grumbled and turned to help Colette jump down as well. Genis and Adam gathered up their own packs and jumped to the ground, waiting for Raine to thank the merchant again and join them.

"Well, looks like it's gonna be one heck of a walk." the young half-elf remarked with a halfhearted grin.


	7. Bonus Scene: Yuan at the Mirage

A/N: This scene was mistakenly left out of the main storyline during writing, so I've included it as a bonus scene here. This takes place just before Raine and Kratos find the merchant that agreed to take them out of Triet to Ossa Trail. Since I don't want to have things like this break the flow of the story, I've since tried much harder to catch the extra little scenes in the game and include them in the story.

* * *

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

Bonus Scene

.

.

In the earliest moments just before dawn broke over Triet, Yuan crept into the Mirage inn, slipping through the window of the room where he was certain Lloyd Irving slept. Kratos wouldn't be there; the other angel would surely be patrolling the inn grounds to be certain there were no attacks. This was the chance he was waiting for to get in and capture Lloyd. With the boy, his plans could move forward much more swiftly and easily.

And then he actually got _inside_ the room.

Yuan had only taken a few steps towards Lloyd's bed, the brunet sound asleep and snoring softly in idle dreamland, when something small flew through the air and hit him square in the forehead sharply. He stumbled back in surprise, uttering a short curse in the old language, and rubbed at his forehead as he searched for the thing that hit him.

"Get out!" a voice hissed towards his direction, and Yuan's hearing pinpointed the source as being on the far side of the room, in the third bed. He heard the 'thwip!' of something else hurled his way and he managed to snatch it out of the air for inspection.

A spoon.

Which meant that figure sliding out of bed and bearing down on him with a giant fork in hand was the Wonder Chef. So, he really **was** breaking the pact...

"Did you just hit me with a _spoon_?" Yuan snapped at the blonde, shaking the utensil at him indignantly.

"I'll throw the whole dinnerware set at you if you don't get **out**." the chef growled softly, pointing the fork in his direction, "And don't think you can use magic on Lloyd or myself. You know full well what the Wonder Fork can do to magic."

Yuan huffed, folding his arms over his chest as he stared down the boy. "I have no interest in you. I'm only here for Lloyd. Don't you already have problems enough with Kratos? If he were to report that you're..." he began and cut himself off when Lloyd suddenly shifted and sat up, looking around in a daze.

"Whoa! What the-?" the brunet cried out in alarm at seeing the cloaked half-elf. Yuan quickly turned and fled out the window, face red at the last sight of the blonde chef's victory grin. Blast it all! The Wonder Chef had been buying time until Lloyd woke up on his own!

Ploy ruined, he retreated to the Renegades base to nurse his wounded pride at being bested for the moment.

.

In the meantime, back in the inn, Kratos, Raine, Colette and Genis had all rushed into the room to check on what made Lloyd cry out like that. He was standing in their midst, wide-eyed with surprise that was quickly fading. Adam had already set the fork back against the wall and was crawling back into bed, grumbling to himself sleepily.

"It was just some weird guy that came in here, it was too dark to see exactly, but Adam chased him off with his fork." the brunet was explaining and then his tone took on a more serious note, "I'll be fine, but Professor Sage and Colette, you two be careful. I don't want to even think that someone might be able to sneak into your rooms."

Once assurances were made and everyone began drifting out, Lloyd went back to bed with a yawn, rubbing at his eyes. He gave a slight jump when his bare foot touched on something metal, then bent down to carefully feel it out and pick it up.

"Huh? Hey, Adam, why's there a spoon on the floor?"


	8. Assassin on the Ossa Trail

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

Lloyd folded his hands behind his head, grinning as they walked up the path. They were making pretty good time. The Ossa Trail ran around and over the smallest of the hills and mountains dividing the coastline from the Triet Desert, making the trek roughly a day's worth of walking. Kratos took the lead while Raine and Colette followed along behind him, moving at a fairly sedate pace. Genis ran from one thing to another, checking out various plants, rocks and trees, exclaiming over every new bit of wildlife that happened to catch his eye. The brunet smiled wider, enjoying how everyone seemed to be finally taking it easy on this part of the trip. The air was cooler and fresher than the desert, and he didn't feel like flopping over every five minutes.

Adam jumped from boulder to boulder nearby, sometimes darting ahead before doubling back with a sunny smile on his face. He looked like he was having fun and Lloyd couldn't help but wonder what kind of chef needed to know how to leap distances like that. After all the chaos that had happened in the desert, with the Desian base and the Seal of Fire and both Colette and Adam getting sick, it was finally starting to feel more like a trip than some frustrating journey.

"Hey, Adam! Heh heh, all that jumping makes you look like a big red and green rabbit." Lloyd called out when the blonde leaped back among them from another run over the boulders and rock outcroppings. He blinked, surprised, then chuckled with a faint blush.

"Sorry. I need to keep up my training _somehow_." Adam returned and fell into step beside the dual swordsman.

"What kind of training has you jumping around on rocks? How is any of that part of cooking?" Lloyd asked, tilting his head. He blinked when the chef turned away, suddenly withdrawing into himself as he moved forward to pull away from the brunet. What did he say?

Lloyd hurried forward, hoping to catch up and try to figure out what he said wrong. He didn't get too far. A voice calling out for them to stop halted him in place in confusion. The group started looking around for the source of the voice, which soon came in the form of this weirdly dressed woman jumping down from the cliffsides above them. She touched down almost daintily before them and Lloyd had the strangest feeling that she would probably be running around on those boulders like Adam did.

"Huh?" the brunet questioned inanely, staring at the woman in confusion. What was with that weird outfit? Colette looked back at him with wide blue eyes.

"Lloyd? Is she another new friend you made?" she asked innocently. Lloyd snorted, eyebrow raised. Him? Friends with someone who dressed like _that_?

"Uh, not that I'm aware of." he returned cautiously. Well, with the way she moved, she might be a friend of Adam's, another cook come to get on his case. He looked back to check on the chef, blinking at his shocked expression.

"Is the Chosen of Mana among you?" the woman asked in a solemn and severe tone. Colette brightened and waved her hand at her before anyone could tell her to keep silent.

"Oh! That's me! Can I help you?" she chirped and the woman sharpened her gaze, turning in place as she lifted a hand, a slip of paper held tight in her fingers.

"Prepare... to _die_." she intoned gravely and, as the group started falling into battle stances, she darted straight for Colette, intent clear on her face. The blonde girl spun her arms as she lost her balance, startled by the speed at which the woman was coming at her, and fell back onto a lever half-hidden by plants and vines. The lever flipped suddenly and the woman pulled up short, crying out in shock when the earth beneath her fell open and she plummeted into the darkness.

"Uh-oh..." Lloyd, Genis and Colette all remarked collectively, the group rushing forward to look at the squared-off hole in the ground. Kratos sighed in what seemed like disbelief and exasperation.

"Oh no! What should I do? I did it again..." Colette whimpered, hurrying over to look down the hole as Adam scrambled to join her, eyes wide and face pale. Lloyd winced at his expression, turning his gaze aside to watch as the Professor walked up to lay a gentle hand on Colette's shoulder.

"You don't need to worry, Colette." she murmured evenly, "If she had not fallen in, you might have been killed." Kratos nodded in agreement, watching them all with impassive eyes. The two blondes knelt at the hole, gazing in with concerned gazes; Adam had reached an arm in, hand spread open as if able to grab the woman from far below.

Lloyd had a strange feeling that everyone was expecting him to say something, a decisive statement of some kind. It usually came in the form of an itch around his Exsphere mount, and he absently rubbed around the metal as he looked between the blondes, his teacher, and the mercenary. How did **he** feel about what just happened? Was he like Raine and Kratos, unconcerned that the weird woman had fallen into a trap hole and could be seriously hurt? Or was he like Colette and Adam, worried for her safety even though she had been trying to kill Colette? Whose life was more important?

Actually, was that even a good question to ask? Lloyd felt a little ashamed thinking that of the scene before him. Who was he to decide which life was more valuable?

"I kinda feel sorry for her." he finally spoke up, walking forward and ignoring the frowns set upon him by both Raine and Kratos, "She probably wasn't expecting Colette's little 'miracles'." Colette nodded, still worried, and Adam looked up at him in surprise before giving him a small smile.

"I hope she's okay." the Chosen added, looking over at Lloyd, her eyes shining with concern. Genis sighed and walked over to join them, looking into the hole himself.

"Even assuming her weight to be 45kg, and this hole to be 10m deep," he pointed out in that matter-of-fact tone that made Lloyd's eyes cross slightly, "and calculating the gravity constant to be 9.8, the impact shouldn't have been fatal." The smaller boy looked around at his friends while Lloyd rubbed at his head, mind straining to understand what was just said. No use, it was like Genis had just spoken in some foreign language. Adam seemed to have understood all that; he looked more relieved and pulled his hand back.

"Gravity... constant?" Lloyd echoed uncertainly, "I don't really get what you said, but she's still alive, right?" He looked at Genis in hopes that he would get the idea that he needed to stop using so many big and complicated words so fast. The smaller boy rolled his eyes as Adam tried to hide a smile behind one hand.

"Probably." Genis replied sarcastically. Lloyd let it slide, walking up to look down the hole himself with a grin of his own. Now that he knew the woman would be all right -and good thing, too, or else he'd be stuck with having to deal with Adam's quirks again- he could afford to have a bit of fun at her expense.

"Still, man, she's got some _bad_ luck, standing on top of a trap door and all." he chuckled. He tilted his head, wondering if he might be able to hear the woman shuffling around down there.

* * *

"It's not a trap." Raine corrected, holding back a smile at the surprise in Lloyd's expression when his gaze pulled away from the depths of the hole to her face. "It's a hidden maintenance passage for the mountain path." she finished explaining. Kratos moved past them all, walking ahead on that path before turning to look back at them with a faint look of irritation.

"We should get moving." he declared in that cool and aloof tone that made Raine wonder if he was really necessary in the group. That kind of coldness and distance seemed to draw out her suspicions, the same as Adam's awkwardness and rejection of the history of the world.

Lloyd straightened as the three kneeling around the hole looked up in collective surprise. The brunet had a scowl on his face. "Hey! Shouldn't we try to find out who that woman was?" he demanded. Raine found herself silently agreeing with him. It would be useful to gather information on their assailant so they could be better prepared to deal with her, should she attempt another strike at Colette's life. Kratos leveled a glare at the dual swordsman that seemed to speak volumes for what he thought of **that**.

"She'll come after us again on her own." he pointed out and gestured at the area by sweeping over it with his eyes, "This area is too confined, the footing is poor, and we would be at a great disadvantage to her obvious speed and agility. It would be wise not to linger if more like her choose to attack in her place."

Lloyd huffed and turned slightly to look at the young chef with them, and Raine followed his gaze, wondering why he thought to seek him out. "Adam kinda moves like that woman does. If she were to fight, I bet he'd be able to stand up to her here." he pointed out.

_'He does? How had I not noticed, what with his moving ahead to scout for us? And if he was scouting, why hadn't he told us about that assassin?'_ Raine thought to herself in surprise.

"What? Me?" Adam blurted out in protest, "Lloyd, I don't think I can do **that**. How many times do I have to tell you? I don't even like _thinking_ about killing a person!"

"Another reason not to stay." Kratos chose that moment to cut in again, "The Wonder Chef would be useless in decisive combat." He ignored the dual cries of 'Hey!' from both Lloyd and Adam and began walking on again. Raine sighed as she began to follow as well, beckoning Colette to join her and leaving the boys to tag after them on their own. It didn't take long for Genis to scamper up to her side, an uncertain expression on his face.

"Why would anyone want to kill Colette? What did she ever do to that lady?" he questioned softly, "I don't understand humans sometimes." Raine sighed and brought her younger brother close for a small hug.

"People don't always act sensibly when monumentous events are happening." she murmured, "We just have to be more careful and do our best to protect Colette."

"Stop _poking_ me!" Adam suddenly complained rather loudly from behind them and Raine closed her eyes and sighed the sigh of the long-suffering as Lloyd raced past them with a whoop and laughter, followed quickly after by the young Wonder Chef, whose red face suggested that he'd tolerated Lloyd's prodding for a short time despite his discomfort. Somehow, Raine knew that Lloyd had pressed his luck on purpose; the two of them seemed to be about the same age and even though he was very good friends with Genis, Lloyd seemed to be glad to have a boy his age to horse around with and be friends.

He'd tried with Colette when they were younger and was reprimanded severely for it; she was the Chosen, after all, and the village didn't want to see their hope for regeneration get hurt because of his mischievousness. Raine felt a little sorry for that, but as things stood now, her heart went out to Colette's situation more.

She had to focus on her and her trials, not Lloyd and his self-imposed mission to make the Wonder Chef as uncomfortable as possible.

* * *

They had to deal with wild bears and crazed man-sized flowers that could move about and tried slapping at them with roots and vines. Colette's _Angel Feathers_ was highly useful in attacking from a greater distance than her normal chakrams. She was glad to feel less of a burden now, after that trial she went through to start her transformation into an angel made her so sick. The monsters and wild animals weren't too troublesome, and other travelers on the path smiled and thanked them for defeating them.

There were hugs and the embracing of hands and murmurs of gratitude and praise for the Chosen and the Goddess Martel. Colette accepted the kind words humbly; it was the way she was taught to accept anything and everything. She then smiled and giggled as Lloyd seemed to suck up the praise and strut around proudly before being pulled into service as human shield for Adam. One traveler had proclaimed him 'an adorable little cook' and thrown her arms around him in a hug, prompting him to panic and run to hide behind Lloyd.

Colette ignored the strange little feeling that curled in her stomach at seeing that, and it was made easier when any embraces that went in Lloyd's direction spooked the chef into joining her and shrinking behind her. She giggled again, turning her head to smile brightly at the blushing boy.

"It's all right, Adam. They just want to thank us for helping them." she told him. The other blonde gave her a weak grin in return.

"I know, Colette, but I wish they could do it without the... touching..." he mumbled timidly.

They moved on, hurrying along the path to reach Izoold before dark. At noon, they stopped by the side of the trail and had a small lunch. Colette noticed the sad look on Adam's face when he gave her a plate of fruit sandwiches, the portion much smaller than before. She gave him a questioning look, puzzled by his expression. Did he somehow know that she wasn't eating very much and gave her small portions to help?

"There has to be another way." he whispered suddenly, "What's happening to you... it just isn't right." Colette gasped softly and reached out without thinking, her fingers closing over his hand as he froze in place.

"Do you know why I haven't been hungry lately?" she asked, eyes wide. He bent his head and turned aside, eyes hidden by shadow and the blonde fringe of hair he kept combing over his face.

"Not really. I don't know much about this whole angel transformation process," he spoke slowly, carefully, like he was trying to make sure he didn't say something wrong, "but I believe that anything that makes it hard for you to enjoy the little things in life, like eating a delicious meal, shouldn't be called 'right'." He turned back to her and managed a small smile, and she wasn't so dumb as to not notice how he slipped his hand out of her grasp. "Oh, what do **I** know, right? I'm just the Wonder Chef; all I have to worry about is cooking and the like."

He walked away before she could protest, going over to Raine in another attempt to get her to stop putting lemons in the sandwiches, and then fleeing from a wicked slap upside the head. Colette sighed as she made herself eat a few of the small sandwiches. It was all going to be okay. She had to believe in that. This was all part of the regeneration. She would have to suffer a little but it was part of her trials. She could live with eating a little less and knowing the food didn't taste so good.

Even if it **was** the Wonder Chef's cooking.

* * *

It was nearing sunset when they finally reached the base of the Ossa Trail, on the side that would lead them to the path to Izoold. Genis had forgotten about the woman from earlier, striking up a conversation with Adam about their now-shared misery in trying to either teach Raine how to cook properly or keep her away from their ingredients. Lloyd was bothering Kratos about sword-fighting or something -Genis didn't really care too much about that stuff anyway- and Raine was looking after Colette, staying close by her side.

When Adam's expression changed from the cheerful smile that came about from talks of recipes to sudden confusion as he turned his head towards a wall of wood that blocked off the entrance to the underground maintenance passages, Genis was the first to realize that it meant something was behind that decrepit wall. He was right.

It shuddered and fell forward, slamming into the earth and kicking up a cloud of dust with such sudden force that the whole group halted and spun to face it, alarmed. Just within the entrance, and covered in dirt, scratches and cuts, was the very woman that had fallen into the passage hours ago. She glared at them, huffing and puffing as she rubbed the sweat from her brow.

"W-wait!" she yelled, and Lloyd stared at her from where he stood. Genis wondered what inane thing he was going to...

"...Wow, she caught up with us." the brunet remarked in surprise, like she was some stray animal that followed them in hopes of a meal. Genis sighed and shook his head. Typical Lloyd.

"Oh! Thank goodness! You're okay!" Colette exclaimed with heartfelt sincerity and the half-elf added a palm to his face. And typical Colette, worrying for the well-being of her would-be assassin. Could humans really be any dumber? Speaking of the assassin, the woman seemed to be put off guard by the remarks, gaping at Colette for a few seconds before shaking herself off and taking up a battle stance.

"D-don't move!" she warned breathily, apparently winded from the effort of pushing down the barricade of wood. Or maybe she had been racing around in that passage, trying to get to this entrance? Genis looked past her; it seemed pretty dark in there, with a dim light that hung from the ceiling several feet beyond her.

"A wise decision..." Raine mused aloud almost tauntingly, her eyes sweeping over the condition of the woman, "You may already be injured; if you exert yourself any further, I can't say for certain what may befall you."

The assassin fumed, her face turning bright red, and Genis wished his sister hadn't gone and done that. "I won't be caught off guard this time!" the woman declared and raised her hand with another of those weird pieces of paper, "Prepare to **die**!" She darted straight at them and Genis yelped as he reached for his kendama, starting up a spell to fight back.

Raine and Colette ran back to join him as Lloyd and Kratos both dashed ahead to meet the woman head on. The assassin flipped over them and threw out the piece of paper, which exploded in a blast of white smoke to reveal some weird monster that startled Genis out of his casting. It looked a bit like a big red bird with arms instead of wings and no feet, and a giant wooden wheel with foreign characters decorating it floated just behind its body.

While Lloyd and Kratos tried their best to pin the swiftly moving woman and her strange attacks kept disorienting the brunet, Genis and Colette turned their attentions on the floating monster that rushed at them. It lashed out with its arms, nearly bowling the blonde girl over had she not been floating around on her wings. Genis cried out in alarm and set back to working on a familiar spell, _Icicle_. Maybe he could freeze it in place and make it easier to beat?

"Adam! Dispel any magical attacks that thing may use!" Raine barked out, her focus going to healing Lloyd and Kratos. The assassin had landed a few good hits in on them with her explosive cards, but she was taking damage herself from the sheer amount of _Demon Fangs_ being hurled in her direction. The pink ribbons from the giant bow on her back were getting tattered and torn, and Genis figured it wouldn't be much longer before she finally gave out.

_"Oh holy wings, I beg of thee to reveal thy glory. Angel Feathers!"_ Colette called out from beside the Wonder Chef, who kept his fork pointed at the floating monster in anticipation. Her wings glowed, sending rings of angelic power flying out to hit the creature.

_"Icicle!"_ Genis added in, timing his spell to hit at the same moment the rings impacted. The monster shuddered from the double attack, then twisted in place, bringing the floating wheel around to face them. He uttered a little shriek of horror at the garish and pale face mounted in the center of the wheel, moreso when it opened its mouth and spewed fire right at him. "Aaagh!" He staggered backwards from the flames, feeling it lick at his exposed arms and singe his hair and clothes.

"Adam!" Raine snapped in the chef's direction as she turned to redirect her healing efforts towards the half-elf mage.

"That wasn't a spell!" Adam returned in realization, eyes wide as the giant fork in his hands failed to shimmer with stolen mana, "I can't use the Wonder Fork on it if it isn't a real spell!" The monster turned the wheel around and aimed the burst of fire at Genis again.

"Then do something else!" he yelled and threw his hands and kendama forward defensively, _"Force Field!"_ The bubble of mana rushed over him in time to shield him from the flames, the fire wrapping and flowing over it and leaving him relatively unharmed for the moment. "Hit it with your frying pan or something! _Hurry!_" Genis added with a wail as the bubble began to shrink all too fast for his comfort.

* * *

Adam did not like how this fight was going. Lloyd and Kratos were pressing their attacks on the woman assassin, Raine had healed Genis and went back to focusing on the swordsmen, and Genis was now huddled in his shield, the target of the creature's attack. This left him and Colette to their own devices. The Chosen was already gripping her chakrams, determined look on her face as she began to fly forward to rescue him.

Think, think, _think_! The fire wasn't a spell, not really; he hadn't been able to detect it and absorb it using the Wonder Fork, so it must be some innate skill. It was coming from the mask on that wheel, so what if he broke the mask?

"Colette, keep it distracted! I've got an idea!" he told the girl as he pulled the frying pan from his pack and harnessed the Wonder Fork. The pan was still a bit heavy for him, he hadn't gotten nearly as much training with it as he would have liked, but he'd regret that later, not now.

"Okay, just be careful!" Colette called out as she rushed the creature and started lashing at it with the spiked chakrams in her hands, _"Whirlwind Rush!"_

Adam circled around the battlefield, moving as swiftly and stealthily as he could while keeping an eye on the battle between the Chosen and the floating bird-monster. Its attention had to be entirely on her so he could sneak up and smash the mask. He chanced a quick glance over at Lloyd and Kratos, wincing at the attack from the woman that threw Lloyd backwards with a blast of smoke, fire, and a small spray of blood. Raine was already working on healing him, Kratos slipping into place to keep the assassin from finishing him off, putting forward the flat of his blade as he raised his own _Guardian_ shield.

"Aah!" Colette cried in pain, her arms raised defensively as the creature backhanded the girl with a sweep of one arm. She flew backwards, wings fluttering to halt her movement and keep her upright while it rushed forward to press the attack. Adam gasped in horror and darted forward, raising the frying pan for an overhead strike. He couldn't let Colette get hurt, not anymore, not when he was risking everything to keep her alive, whole, _human_.

As he brought the pan down on the mask, the grotesque face's eyes flipped open, bulging out at him. The chef barely had time to express shock as the heavy iron pan smashed into its forehead and cratered it with a multitude of cracks when the creature spun around with a shriek of fury and slashed across him with the long, thin fingers of its hand. Pain sent him reeling as Adam was thrown aside, sprawling with all the finesse of a discarded doll after crashing against the rock around the mountain passage entrance.

Dimly, he heard his name being yelled, but he wasn't sure from who. Earth and sky spun and blurred, and he couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. Training hadn't prepared him for this. Even then, Adam tried to push himself up, to shake off his dizziness and get back into the battle. When vertigo began pulling him back down, he closed his eyes and tried to orient himself without them.

And it was then that he picked up on something coming up behind him from within the opened passage. His ankle was snagged in what felt like rope or vines and he was jerked back to the ground, crying out in panic and pain before hitting his head against the fallen barricade of wood. He was lost to the world after that.


	9. Night in Izoold

A/N: Now that a decent chunk of this fic has been posted, I'm going to reduce the chapter uploads to once a week so that i can spend time working on fics and get this one more polished. Also, I've been sucked into this really awesome F2P MMO so forgive me if I forget an update somewhere. Gonna try finishing up the wedding chapter in Pokemon; i have no clue how weddings go...

* * *

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

The woman moved _fast_; this much Lloyd knew right away. Her clothes were also kind of distracting, purple and black and fitting her body way too snugly, tied off at the waist by that huge pink bow and its trailing ribbons of fabric. Half the time he was slashing out, the brunet almost thought he'd hit Kratos by mistake. And the weapons she was using to attack them with? Weird beyond all reason. Cards? _Really?_ Well, he was adding that to his mental list of 'Strange Things To Get Hit With' along with Genis's kendama and Adam's frying pan.

To be fair, Adam hadn't hit him with the frying pan yet, but Lloyd was pretty sure he'd get it someday.

"Oh, will you hold still? I'm after the Chosen, not **you**!" the raven-haired assassin snapped in frustration, flipping back from another attack and flinching in pain. She'd taken quite a bit of damage after Kratos blocked one of her attacks before it hit him. He'd stumbled back from one of her techniques, dizzy until Raine's healing magic washed over him.

He heard the sound of a dull explosion, a sound he'd come to learn came when a monster was defeated, a kind of snap in the air that was unmistakable. The woman assassin yelled in shock, hands going up to her cheeks as her dark eyes widened. "My guardian! You actually managed to _defeat_ it?" she exclaimed and narrowed her eyes furiously at Lloyd and Kratos, "You two...!" She flipped back from them, just barely avoiding another _Sonic Thrust_ from Kratos, and landed on a boulder several feet away. "Ugh! I _swear_ I will kill you **all** next time!" she snapped and hurled down something at her feet. A blast of smoke rose up and when it faded, she was gone.

"Adam!" Genis cried out, "Hey! Let go of him! _Fireball!_" Lloyd turned in surprise, blinking widened eyes at the sight of his best friend's spell flitting through the air and smashing into one of those weird walking flowers that had been on the Ossa Trail earlier, a plant monster that Colette had thought was kind of pretty. As it writhed and burned, screaming in that harsh manner that shouldn't be possible for a plant, the brunet spotted its vines trailing away from it, ending with them wrapped around the chef's ankles, the other boy laying face-down on the fallen wood planks.

"What the-? Hey! _Hey!_" Lloyd blurted out as he scrabbled after the plant monster, "Where the hell do you think you're taking him?" He lashed out with one of his swords, felling the creature, then turned and brought both blades down on the vines.

_"First Aid!"_ Professor Sage's voice called out again and Lloyd stepped back as he watched the shimmering light of healing mana sparkle over the blonde. He knelt and carefully turned Adam over, concerned expression on his face as Genis and Colette hurried over to join him, their teacher not far behind them.

He looked all right, perfectly healed over, but he had a fairly distressed look to him despite being unconscious. Lloyd grew more worried. Why wasn't Adam waking up? What happened to knock him out like this? He looked up at his friends for an explanation.

"That monster threw him against the wall and he just... crumpled." Genis said quietly, "I don't understand it either." He looked up as his sister finally made it to them and she bent to press her fingers lightly against the chef's neck.

"It may be because he doesn't have an Exsphere." she remarked and Lloyd blinked in surprise before looking back down at Adam. He didn't?

Oh, that's right. A red flush came over his face as he recalled just **how** Raine would know that; the undressing at the Seal of Fire. If the Wonder Chef had an Exsphere equipped, the two of them would have certainly spotted it at that time.

"Lloyd's face is all red. Is he getting sick too, Professor?" Colette asked innocently. Lloyd sputtered and shook his head, holding up his hands as if to ward off any more accusations while Kratos walked up to them, stoic expression showing only the barest hints of irritation.

"It seems you've easily forgotten that we just escaped an assassination attempt on the Chosen for a second time. Rather than staying here, where we could be attacked again, it would be best to make our way to the coastline and find a town or village to rest in." the mercenary told them sternly and turned to walk away from the trail.

Lloyd scowled at the man's back, then looked up at the sound of the Professor's voice. "He's right. Adam will wake up on his own; he hasn't received any serious injury." she told him coolly, "In the meantime, he is your responsibility, so you will carry him until he wakes up." The brunet looked aghast, drawing back from her as if he'd just been issued more homework.

"What? **Me?** Why do I have to-?" he began protesting as Genis laughed behind his hands.

"You were the one who spoke on the Wonder Chef's behalf to have him join us." the Professor told him firmly, scolding in that teacher tone she liked to use on him, "You took responsibility when you told him that you would ask us to let him join." Lloyd grimaced, then shot a glare at Genis to get him to shut up. Raine stood back up and turned slightly, gazing back at the place where the assassin last stood. "Those clothes..." she murmured under her breath, a distant look in her eyes. Lloyd tilted his head, wondering what she was talking about. The woman's clothes?

"Professor? Something wrong?" he asked and the older woman seemed to snap back to attention with a little shake of her head.

"No. It's nothing. Let's go." she replied and pat Genis on the shoulder to encourage him to start walking. Watching the Sage siblings make their way to the path to leave the Ossa Trail, Colette gave a little sigh, then smiled at Lloyd.

"He'll be okay, Lloyd. Let's go find a town and get to an inn. Then Adam can finish sleeping in a nice warm bed." she remarked cheerfully. Then she skipped ahead to join up with the Professor, leaving Lloyd to puzzle out how he was supposed to carry the chef without exhausting himself within a few minutes.

Eventually, he joined the rest of the group further down the path with Adam on his back, grumbling to himself about the unfairness of it all as the blonde's chin rested on his shoulder. The cape was in the way, so Lloyd took it off, rolled it up and shoved it into his own travel pack. Then the hat kept falling off, so he took that, too. At least the blonde was light; Lloyd could support his weight against his back and didn't feel at all bothered by having to hold up his legs.

He just didn't like the idea of being responsible for Adam. It was _his_ idea to join the group in the first place! Lloyd and Genis both tried to talk him out of it! Why did he have to get stuck with hoisting Adam around?

* * *

Kratos lifted an eyebrow when Lloyd jogged up to his side, huffing in a show of effort at having to walk with the added weight of the young Wonder Chef on his back. The extra packs were put on a makeshift harness that Noishe wore, so he shouldn't have any excuse to complain. The brunet didn't say anything yet, but he had that look on his face that Kratos was beginning to relearn meant he was going to ask something stupid any moment now. He needed to be distracted somehow.

"Regenerating the world," Kratos murmured suddenly, thinking on the matter that had bothered him for so long, the task that was both futility and farce, "is such a foolish venture."

Lloyd's head snapped up and towards him so quickly, the mercenary thought he'd break his own neck. "What's foolish about it?" the teen snapped, eyes set in that increasingly familiar glare full of righteous fury. Kratos gazed back at him coolly, the calm mirror against that glare.

"Let us say that this regeneration is successful." he posed logically, "Mana is restored and the Desians are sealed. Life becomes prosperous here. Eventually, however, the world will begin to decline again. Another Chosen will have to make this same dangerous journey. It does not end." He watched Lloyd's expression change to confusion and dismay, that fire fading from his gaze.

"That's..." the brunet mumbled, trailing off helplessly. Kratos shook his head, annoyed by how easily his son lost sight of the larger picture.

"What we are doing does not solve the basic problem. It merely buys us time." he added bitterly. And it wasn't even time that would go to a worthy cause. Just time that would be squandered on Yggdrasill's quest to revive Martel.

"I wonder why the world was created in the first place." Lloyd mused aloud, surprising Kratos with his words. He looked at his son again, seeing a strangely thoughtful expression in place of that dismayed one from earlier. He rolled his shoulders slightly, shifting Adam's weight without losing that look. "Why does the world have this problem at all?" The dual swordsman finally noticed Kratos staring at him and flushed a little. "Wh-what?" he questioned.

"You're asking that question now?" Kratos asked of him. This seemed promising; Adam already knew what was really going on and chose to sacrifice his inherited protections to choose a new path. Lloyd followed the religion blindly... but this seemed to be opening his eyes. The brunet fell silent, glaring ahead of them as the fire flickered back to life in his eyes. "Well, it doesn't matter. You now have doubts." the Seraphim went on quietly, "If you do not change your thought processes, then maybe something will change."

Maybe he'll realize the hidden truth. Maybe he'll be like Adam and choose to follow a new path, a path that will break them all free. Maybe he'll seek a way out of this endless cycle.

"Kratos, you're weird." Lloyd finally decided, looking up at him with a mix of annoyance and tolerance. Kratos sighed, bringing one hand up to cover his face in exasperation. Maybe not. Not yet.

"Perhaps I am." he muttered and brought his hand down to watch the boy yawn tiredly, "We're almost to the next town. If he is becoming a burden to you..." He gestured towards Adam in silent offering. To his surprise, internally of course, Lloyd shook his head.

"No, that's okay. He's not that heavy." he returned and gave Kratos a wry smile, "Besides, Professor said he was my responsibility, since I told him I would ask you and her if he could come with us." Kratos gave a small nod of agreement, quietly pleased with that. So he was learning to take responsibility; why did it feel like this was a lesson that would take a **very** long time to learn?

* * *

It was nearing dark when they finally arrived at the village. Genis felt like he was going to collapse any second now as Raine held onto his hand and marched for the little wooden building with the sign proclaiming it to be the Seagull Inn. He glanced back over his shoulder in time to see Kratos pause and let the Chosen pass him by, waiting for Lloyd to catch up. The brunet looked sleepy, even as he continued trudging along with Adam on his back. Genis slipped his hand free of his sister's grasp and stayed behind to wait for him, giving Raine a reassuring smile when she looked back at him in mild confusion and letting her go on ahead.

"You okay, Lloyd?" the little half-elf asked in concern once Kratos moved on into the inn. He gave a small start, jerking his head up to blink at Genis rather stupidly.

"Huh? No, I'm good. Just tired." Lloyd replied after a moment to think over what was being asked of him. He gave a small grin, tilting his head aside to sort of point towards the still-sleeping chef. "I can't wait to drop him off so I can finally get the feeling back in my arms." he added. Genis laughed softly, walking beside the dual swordsman as they both went into the inn.

"Funny, I thought you'd be able to handle one skinny little chef after so much time holding up water buckets in school!" he teased the older boy, grinning wider at the embarrassed flush on Lloyd's face. They both froze when the blonde in question suddenly uttered a soft groan.

_"Cinque minuti, la madre, per favore."_ Adam mumbled, rubbing his cheek against Lloyd's shoulder. Genis rubbed his head as Lloyd's face turned completely red.

"Uhhh, what did he say?" he asked before noticing the color of his best friend's face, "...Lloyd?"

"I just want to go to bed." Lloyd grumbled, stomping towards the nearest bed and unceremoniously dumping Adam onto it. Kratos and Raine both looked over at him and frowned sternly while the chef flailed about in surprise, now wide awake and disoriented by his surroundings.

"Nice going, Lloyd." Genis remarked with a dry tone, smirking almost smugly at the brunet's frustrated expression, "Let's hope Adam doesn't get us kicked out of here." He turned towards the chef, holding up his hands as a gesture of peace, "Hey, calm down! You're okay, Adam; we carried you from the Ossa Trail to Izoold."

Adam stared at him with a look of bemused disbelief, hair somewhat mussed from his thrashing. Absently, he reached up one hand and straightened the fringe that covered his eye. Genis's eyebrows lifted a little at the teasing glimpse of pale white skin in a thin line before it vanished behind the curtain of blonde strands. What was that? Was he hiding something under that hair?

"You what? **Carried** me?" he finally exclaimed in horror, reeling back from Genis as if the half-elf had just declared himself germ-ridden and had rubbed his grimy hands all over his precious ingredients.

"Actually, **Lloyd** carried you." Genis corrected and burst out laughing when Adam switched to recoiling from Lloyd with even greater horror, face flushing brightly to match the brunet's, who glared back with a kind of pout. He looked like he was going to say something, thought better of it for once, and just marched off.

"I'm going to get the rest of our stuff from Noishe and then I'll pick out a bed for me." Lloyd grumbled, then paused when Genis grabbed the ends of his ribbons and gave them a tug. He'd taken a good look at the room they had all been assembled in and noticed something that didn't sit well with him. Leave it to dumb Lloyd to not see it either. Well, it probably didn't help that they were focused on the chef the whole time.

"Lloyd, there are only four beds in the room we rented." the half-elf pointed out, a strange feeling of dread arising as Raine and Kratos discussed something quietly, nodded, then had the mercenary walk out of the room. "Sis... what are you plotting?" he added, glaring at Raine with half-moon eyes. He didn't like the way his skin was crawling under her return look.

* * *

"We're **what**?" Adam surprised himself with how calm he sounded once Raine finished explaining their sleeping situation. He wanted to scream, howl out in outrage and horror, but he supposed the shock had numbed him to the point that his voice came out even and almost cold. This was _horrid_. First he wakes up from a pleasantly dreamless sleep rather rudely and without any warning that he'd been moved during that sleep, then told that he'd been carried some distance by _Lloyd_ of all people, and now **this**?

"It's the only way we can all use this room without compromising Colette." Raine told him patiently as Lloyd, Genis and Colette turned their eyes on him in surprise. Probably they expected him to do just as he wanted; pitch a fit. "Colette will take one bed, Kratos will take another. This leaves us with two beds. Genis and I will share one as we are brother and sister." she repeated her earlier words, "Which leaves the last bed to you and Lloyd, Adam."

"I'm not sharing a bed with him." Adam returned flatly, folding his arms over his chest as his cheeks turned pink, "He can have the bed; I'll sleep on the floor." Colette looked worried, lifting her hands to press her palms together in mock-prayer. Dread filled him as he suspected she was going to protest. _'Oh, no, Colette, don't say anything...!'_

"It wouldn't be fair for Adam to sleep on the floor. It doesn't sound very comfortable." she remarked, gazing up at Raine with imploring blue eyes, "Lloyd and Genis said he looks kind of like me, so can he share with me and we can pretend he's my brother, too?" Lloyd and Genis looked taken aback by her innocent expression, Raine's hand flying up to her heart as her eyes widened.

Adam had choked on air, flushing a brighter red than before. This _couldn't_ be happening! Suddenly, ditching the group and going to Tethe'alla sounded like a great idea. Kratos returned to the room with the rest of the packs in his hands. An eyebrow lifted on his face as he took on a bemused look at the circle of aghast expressions.

"Will someone explain this?" he finally requested and Lloyd volunteered the answer in his usual straightforward manner.

"Colette wants Adam to sleep with her." the brunet replied before realizing what he just said. The chef squeaked, hands flying up to his mouth as his eyes went round, face burning with embarrassment while Kratos turned a narrow glare on him.

He supposed he passed out again after that, since Adam didn't remember anything else from that point on. The Wonder Chef found himself growing annoyed by that; how was he to stop Colette's sacrifice if he kept fainting like this?

.

When he woke up again, it was to find the world in the dim light of encroaching sunrise and himself tucked into a comfortable bed... with another figure behind him. Adam tensed, then very slowly turned over just enough to look over his shoulder and see who he wound up sharing a bed with in the end.

Brown spiky hair. Lloyd. Of course...

With a sigh, Adam carefully tested each limb to be sure nothing was _touching_, then slid out from under the blankets and carefully felt around the floor for his shoes to put them on. The lighting in the room was bad for him, his vision unable to make out much difference between shadows and objects. He closed his eyes, slowly inhaled, then exhaled to calm himself further, then resumed his search with his eyes still closed.

This time he found his shoes without any trouble. With those on, he went straight to the packs and pulled his cape and toque free, slipping them on easily. He grabbed the Wonder Fork and his own travel bag, then headed out of the inn after making sure the rest of the group was still fast asleep.

He knew Kratos wouldn't be, just faking it, but now wasn't the time to worry about that. They were in a new location, and as he'd promised, Adam had to go hide and prepare the recipe to teach the group.

Izoold. As Adam stepped out of the inn and opened his eyes, peering around at the village that sprawled before him in the slowly strengthening morning light, he took the time to consider the place Genis had identified for him the night before. The smell of fish hung in the air, making him wrinkle his nose for a moment before training kicked in and he smoothed his expression to show no reaction to the smell. From what he remembered of his education, Izoold was a fishing and trade village, one of the larger establishments along the eastern coast, responsible for bringing goods from the other continent over to this one and providing fish to Triet and other towns beyond the Ossa Mountains.

The door opened with a creak again and Adam turned slightly in surprise, looking back over his shoulder to see Kratos standing there with the same stoic expression as always.

"So," the mercenary began in an even tone, "you've regained your eyesight after all. I assume the Wonder Chef's cooking was involved?" Adam frowned, wary of the fact that Kratos remembered his former condition and irritated that he'd brought up the subject of it and his father in the same breath.

"What does it matter to you?" he bit back, "I can see just fine, and that's enough for me to see that what Cruxis is doing is **wrong**. I'll find a way to stop Colette's angel transformation." Kratos narrowed his eyes at him.

"You are only to support them with your skills and recipes. Interfering with the work of Cruxis is not allowed." he returned coldly, "Think, boy; if the Chosen falters in her journey, she'll gain the attention of Cruxis more quickly and you will be discovered among her entourage. You won't escape punishment again if you are seen acting outside of the pact." Adam stared in shock, mouth opening slightly. Again? What did Kratos mean by that? When had he ever been punished for anything? He didn't have the power to do anything _until_ he became Wonder Chef and he'd been keeping his plans to himself all this time.

He didn't have the chance to ask; Kratos turned back and disappeared into the building. Adam watched him go, then pursed his mouth and walked off into the village. He had a job to do.


	10. Finding a Ship and Adam

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

"Not again! Where'd he go?" Lloyd exclaimed some few hours later. Colette watched her dear friend tear through the blankets of the bed he'd been sharing with the other blonde, then check under it. Genis sighed and shook his head in exasperation as Raine brushed her hair carefully over her ears. Kratos stood by the doorway, watching the brunet with some amount of annoyance.

"Lloyd, did you forget what Adam said?" Genis finally told him, one hand on his waist as he gestured with the other, "When we come to a new town, Adam will go and hide somewhere in that town. All we have to do is find him and he'll teach us a recipe and rejoin us." Colette nodded, smiling encouragingly.

"It's like Hide and Seek! Only, we're all It." she piped in to hide the strange foreign feeling she'd begun having ever since Lloyd pulled the Wonder Chef into their group. She'd tried ignoring it, and it worked so far. She liked Adam, really, she did; he was cute and kind of shy and had his own secrets like Colette had hers. She felt like the two of them had a lot in common. But every now and then that weird feeling would rise up and it made her feel kind of uncomfortable.

It didn't help that she had felt strangely relieved when they all woke up and he was gone.

"It seems rather childish, but if it's the only way to locate him then I suppose we have little choice." Raine finally sighed, packing away her brush and picking up her staff. Lloyd looked a little frustrated and annoyed, but nodded and raced past Kratos to get out the door and get them checked out of the inn.

They all headed out into the village proper after that, facing the assault of fish smells that put them off for several minutes until the ocean wind dispersed it to more tolerable levels. Colette looked around at the people working with a sense of awe. Everyone was doing their best to survive and help each other live relatively well. She had to do her best, too, in order to save them all and regenerate the world.

Even if she still felt a little scared.

"Man, it's so cool that Colette has wings and can fly now." Genis sighed wistfully as they walked. Raine and Kratos spent their time asking around for information about possible sea passage, and Lloyd kept his eyes open for signs of blonde hair. He turned back to smile at them upon hearing his friend's voice.

"Yeah, that's pretty awesome. Right, Colette?" he asked, grinning at her. She chuckled nervously, nodding in agreement to make him happy.

"Uh-huh! I was pretty surprised, too!" Colette added more genuinely. She had been; she had no idea that releasing the seal would result in her gaining the beautiful pink wings.

"So what's next? Maybe a halo?" Genis went on in a thoughtful tone, excitement making his voice rise higher in volume, eyes shining brightly, "Or maybe your body starts glowing? Or maybe...?"

Colette found herself flinching with each new thing the other boy counted off as being a possible angel transformation. Would she really get any of them? Would she slowly lose her humanity and become as freakish and inhuman as the monsters they fought? Her gaze dropped, her smile long gone, and Lloyd quickly caught on, reaching out to bop Genis on the head.

"Hey! Cut it out!" the brunet griped with a half-glare, "Why don't you go help the Professor and Kratos get us a boat or find Adam or something?" Genis rubbed at the sore spot, returning the glare with one of his own.

"Geez, what'd you do that for? Stupid Lloyd..." he grumbled, but ran off anyway to help question the villagers. Colette kept her gaze down as they walked together, even when Lloyd murmured her name to get her attention.

"It's weird, isn't it?" she muttered, growing disgusted with herself. She was becoming something not human and separating herself from her friends and her own humanity. How could anyone like her when she was becoming repulsive? "Having wings... it makes me weird, doesn't it?"

"No, it's not!" Lloyd argued, one hand dropping onto her shoulder and squeezing lightly. She looked up at him, dared to see his expression, and was surprised to find him looking determinedly back at her. "Even if you become an angel, you're still you." he told her firmly, "You're still Colette, and that's what matters."

She smiled, slowly and uncertainly at first, then more warmly. Yes, that was true. She had to focus on that, taking comfort in Lloyd's unwavering belief. For now, for this moment and for however long she walked this earth, no matter what, she was Colette Brunel; she was Lloyd's friend.

"Thank you, Lloyd." she whispered, drying a stray tear with the cuff of her sleeve, "I'll... I'll remember that."

* * *

Most responses to her inquiries led her to the same place, the docks. Raine tried to quell her uneasiness and crinkled her nose at the more pungent smell of fish and tar when the group stepped out onto the solid wood planks that made up Izoold's port. From what Genis was able to find out on his own after being run off by Lloyd for annoying him in some manner, one of the villagers had been able to cross from Palmacosta to Izoold by taking a ride with someone named Aifread. At first this was promising, but hope was immediately dashed when Genis added that Aifread had already returned to his hometown, wherever that may be.

"And so we must find another boat, and someone also willing to give passage to the Chosen." Raine sighed, scanning the few -**very** few- small ships and boats that were still manned. After a moment, she directed Kratos's attention (which had been previously focused on Lloyd's mini-search for Adam) towards one such boat that still had one man working on its sails. "Let's ask that man there. His ship looks sturdiest."

She didn't mention that it wouldn't help her in the least, but at best something that size might have room below the deck so she wouldn't have to _look_ at the sea.

Kratos made his usual uncaring 'Hmph' of noncommittal, nodding for her to go ahead, then turned his gaze on Colette, watching impassively as she and Genis played a miming game with a strange pink creature that acted like some kind of anthropomorphic cat. Lloyd had ignored it in favor of peeking behind the crates the creature was standing by, calling the Wonder Chef's name. Raine sighed, shook her head, and went on to talk to the ship's owner.

It didn't take long for her request to be turned down, though not without some regret on the part of the captain of the ship. He pointed towards a large gash in the ship's hull, damage caused by monsters in the sea that had attacked him on his way back from a recent fishing expedition. Raine turned a slight shade of green and managed to thank him for his time.

"Prob'ly gonna get the same answer if you ask anyone else here, Ma'am." the captain added gruffly before gesturing towards a boat further down the docks, a rather plain-looking young man with neat brown hair sitting nearby and untangling a length of rope, "Max there, he's the only one of us left with a boat still seaworthy. If anyone can get you across, it'd be him. Good luck talkin' him into it, though."

Raine considered the other man and the size of the ship before deciding with some distaste that it would just have to do. She thanked the captain once more, then turned to rejoin the rest of the group to discuss her findings. Kratos was still standing guard, pivoting in place to keep his gaze on the three children running all over the docks.

"Not here! No one's seen him here!" "Not here either! Wow, Adam's really good at Hide and Seek!" "Where the hell could he be hiding? ADAM! I'm gonna kick him when I find him!"

The half-elf sighed in exasperation. That's right, they had yet to find the Wonder Chef, and knowing Lloyd and Colette they would refuse to leave the town until the other blonde was safely esconced in their group again. She went ahead to talk to Max, the other ship captain, about crossing the sea to Palmacosta. Almost immediately she got nowhere.

"No way! There are monsters out there!" Max exclaimed, hands wringing the rope absently, "B-Besides, I have to stay and be sure Lyla's okay after what that Aifread jerk did! I mean, she _has_ to know he's no good for her!"

So they couldn't get passage because of some kind of love triangle. Beautiful. Raine went back to the group again, thinking of what else could be done. However, Max's words seemed to stick to her for some reason. And then in a flash, she recalled Genis's report on a man named Aifread. Perhaps speaking to this Lyla would gain them information on where to find the mystery captain? It was worth a try.

Gathering the children wasn't entirely too difficult; Colette and Genis fell into line by her and Kratos quite obediently. Lloyd was a whole different matter, still looking into barrels and behind small dilapidated buildings and generally annoying everyone in his immediate vicinity. The mercenary finally went over, snagged the brunet by his collar and dragged him back to the rest of the group. That done, Raine explained her plan to them all, raising an eyebrow when Genis lifted a hand voluntarily.

"I was asking this kid if he saw Adam anywhere, and he said no, but he did mention that some lady who lives near the Seagull Inn was talking about Aifread. That might be Lyla." her brother remarked with bright eyes, "And since we didn't find Adam here at the docks, maybe he'll be near the houses. He might even be hiding _inside_ one!"

"That's cheating." Lloyd muttered in irritation, cheeks flushing as he spoke.

"Regardless, we should go and find this girl for more information before continuing the search for the Wonder Chef." Raine told them firmly and led the way back to the village proper.

* * *

Kratos wasn't sure how much longer he could stand to see his son pester people and look behind objects in futility. Did he just completely forget that the Wonder Chef disguised himself to hide? This was no simple game; the boy had trained for two years in the use of his powers. While this was nowhere near the strength and power of his father -not yet-, it was still more than what Lloyd could comprehend.

"Lloyd." he finally called out and promptly squashed that tiny thrill at seeing the boy turn his head to blink at him curiously, wide-eyed with innocence and looking so much like his infant self that the Seraph could almost see himself back in those old days.

But no. Those days were gone, gone and dead, and years created a gulf between the two of them, years and knowledge -or rather a lack thereof-. So he remained impassive and Lloyd tilted his head, waiting for him to say something. "Remember what I told you at the Seal of Fire. The Wonder Chef excels in deception; he relies on the power of disguise and teleportation." Kratos told him coolly, "You must find objects that attempt to blend into the surroundings. Because he is young his power is not at its full strength. This may affect his disguises."

Lloyd gave him a blank look, then scowled as his face colored out of embarrassment, but he gave a lopsided stack of crates a suspicious look and poked at it experimentally. Kratos sighed and pressed a hand to his forehead. At least he was trying. He couldn't fault the boy for that. "No, Lloyd, that's not him." It was in too obvious a place, and the chef would have been trained to stay out of easily found areas for his own safety.

Finding Lyla was another trial of patience. Each door they knocked on to ask if such a girl lived there resulted in a negative answer, and while they talked with the owners of the houses Lloyd would stick his head in and look around suspiciously.

"Hey, nothing weird's shown up today, has there?" he would blurt out almost as soon as Raine finished asking about Lyla. And each time the villager would stare at Lloyd like he'd just spoken in a foreign language before looking up at Kratos with raised eyebrows. The mercenary could just _feel_ the questions being directed at him.

_'He's with you, right?'_

_'Didn't you teach him manners?'_

_'What kind of family member are you?'_

Because of course he looked far too young to be his father so that just made the encounters that much more awkward on his part. Thankfully, they were silent questions, unspoken, but Raine was giving him those suspicious glances again.

The next house they visited brought them two pieces of good fortune. First, the man there pointed out that Lyla lived right next door, bringing an end to the search for the woman. Secondly, Lloyd zeroed in on a strange wooden sculpture in a corner of the one room home, darting into the house before anyone could say anything about it.

"This thing's weird." the brunet remarked, glaring at the sculpture. The man gave him an annoyed look.

"It was there this morning, don't have a clue where it came from." he grumbled, "I was going to see if I could sell it as a souvenir to some merchant." Kratos tilted his head, peering at the object himself before huffing a little. He was right; Adam's abilities were still weak, even after two years of training. How could he hope to blend into his surroundings with **that**?

* * *

Lloyd glared at the sculpture even more. It looked like a pelican at first, one of those gangly, awkward-looking birds that the fishermen were shooing away from their catches, strange beak and long legs and curving neck and all. However, its body was wrong, very wrong. The body of the bird was shaped like a little house, roof and door included, with no wings of any kind attached. The dual swordsman glanced around the statue out of curiosity. There was an anchor leaning against the wall, and some nets and rope were hung nearby. If the pelican statue had a proper body, Lloyd could have overlooked it as part of the fisherman decor.

But it was wrong-looking, and that was enough of a giveaway. Lloyd reached out and poked the statue in the head, wondering what would happen now. A burst of white smoke erupted from the statue, sending him to fall back on his rump while the guy who lived there let out a startled yelp. When the smoke cleared, Adam stood in the statue's place with a grin. He danced lightly back and forth on his feet and laughed at the expression on Lloyd's face.

"I am the mysterious gourmet, the Wonder Chef!" the blonde declared, reaching into his bag to pull out a small green book with a gold symbol emblazoned on the cover. He opened it and smiled wider. "This time, I'll give you the recipe for rice balls..." he began to say, reading over the page in his little book.

Lloyd didn't let him finish. He jumped to his feet and shoved the other boy backwards, pinning him to the wall by the shoulders and startling the blonde, nets and hanging sacks of whatever rattling from the force. "What the **hell**, Adam?" he snapped, "Do you know how worried we were when you weren't at the inn with us this morning? Yeah, okay, I know you said you were gonna do this hiding and teaching recipes thing, but at least leave a note to tell us you were gonna hide!"

He was dimly aware that his friends were staring at him in shock, the villager gaping at them openly. All that he focused on now was the wide-eyed expression of confusion and surprise on Adam's face, the blonde holding very still under his grip, book and fork still clutched in each of his hands.

"I... I'm sorry?" he finally managed to get out, a faint blush coloring his cheeks, "I didn't think I needed to... leave a note. I never had to before." Lloyd dropped his head, sighing harshly. It was too hard to say anything with the other boy's face like that. It made him feel strange, like he overdid something or got too enthusiastic and dragged somebody along in a helpless whirlwind of confusion. It made him feel extra stupid.

"Well, just leave one for us, okay?" Lloyd finally muttered, pulling back and rubbing the back of his neck. A quick glance told him the chef had relaxed again -oh yeah, that's right, he touched the guy without warning again- and pulled away from the wall, watching him back with a wary expression. "I think that innkeeper's pissed that I tore up her place looking for you." he added. Adam winced, crossing his arms over himself and managing to do so without looking awkward, considering he still had his hands full.

"I hadn't thought it would be a problem. This has never happened to me before, so forgive my unawareness." he mumbled, "I... Next time... I'll be certain to leave a message."

"Hey! Get out of my house!" the man finally found his voice and sounded both irritated and embarrassed, "Weird kids!" Lloyd couldn't help but laugh at the dismayed look on Adam's face as they hurried to leave with the rest of the group.

* * *

Once outside and all together again, Adam had only a moment to put away the Wonder Fork before Raine's hand came down on his head in a fierce slap that had him seeing stars, his own hands flying up to further protect himself as he staggered in place.

"That's for the foolishness of concealing yourself so poorly and in another's home! That man was a complete stranger; what if he'd found you first?" Raine scolded him fiercely, "You'd have no way of knowing how he would have reacted without witnesses!"

"I'm sorry!" he cried in alarm, blinking rapidly to clear his vision and stave off the tears of pain that threatened to seep out. Good Goddess, this woman was insane! How did she become a teacher with that kind of temperament?

Apparently she wasn't done as she then turned and gave the same forceful slap to Lloyd that filled the air with a sharp crack, the brunet yelling in pain and clutching his own head in shared misery. "And that's for boorishly barging into another man's home just to satisfy your curiosity! Didn't Dirk teach you manners, Lloyd?" she lectured sternly.

"Ow! Sorry, Professor!" Lloyd exclaimed, peering up at her with one eye as he covered his head even more, "But I was really sure that that thing in the corner was Adam, and I was right, wasn't I?"

"I'm sure they didn't mean it, Professor Sage." Colette piped in, concern plain on her face as she held her hands together demurely, "Nobody was hurt and we found Adam, and he's safe with us again. So everything's okay now." Adam found himself nodding eagerly, agreeing with the Chosen. Even Lloyd was doing the same. Anything to avoid another slapping, he supposed. Raine sighed, her hands on her hips as she regarded the two of them like they were bothersome little boys not even half their ages. Adam felt rather tiny under that look.

"Well, I suppose it can be forgiven for now. We still need to find passage across the sea, so let's ask Lyla for information on Aifread." she decided and marched for the house next door. Genis snickered behind his hands, looking up at him and Lloyd with a smug look in his eyes.

"You two are gonna be real entertaining to watch on this journey." he remarked, "Lloyd's stupidity is rubbing off!"

"Hey!" Adam exclaimed in the same moment as the brunet, feeling rather insulted and humiliated by that. It wasn't his fault at all! He was taught to be in any number of random places, but no one ever bothered to tell him of possible consequences for his choice in hiding spots. The idea of anything befalling a Wonder Chef in the field was ludicrous and so no one could conceive of any dangers to be wary of.

In the end, he walked along with the rest of the Chosen's group to Lyla's house, gingerly rubbing his head and wondering why exactly Lloyd wanted him to get over his aversion to physical contact. Between being pinned to a wall and Raine smacking him, there really wasn't much helping the idea of it along. He shot Lloyd a halfhearted glare, resolving to give Genis the recipe instead, never mind the fact that he was supposed to give it to the one who found him.


	11. Path to Palmacosta

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

"How can I quell these feelings I have? Aifread..." Lyla was a rather comely woman as far as Sylvaranti appeared, short brown hair topped with a patterned headscarf and dressed in a sleeveless shirt with mid-length blue skirt. She stood at a window, easily spotted after her grandmother let the group in to see her. Adam gave her a critical once-over, paying close attention to her arms, legs and what he could see of her face. She seemed very healthy, which should mean the food in this village was still of good quality.

Or maybe she was getting better food from elsewhere. He'd considered other villagers as he was exploring the area before choosing his hiding place, and they all seemed a bit thinner and a little haggard compared to Lyla. So the movement of food in this area was still compromised. Adam gave a tiny crestfallen sigh; was he even making a difference in Sylvarant? Most of his training was in Tethe'alla, he'd spent a few months in this world trying to make his way around and failed at that pretty miserably. Couldn't even make it to Luin without his accompanying guards panicking over the change in mood that always passed over him when he got near that region...

"If you're looking for Aifread, we heard he went back to his hometown." Genis told the young woman, "We were wondering if you could..." The woman spun around from the window, eyes wide as they locked onto the small boy.

"What did you say? Is that true?" Lyla demanded of him. Genis and Lloyd both looked taken aback by the force of her attitude. Adam just winced at the volume and stepped back a little, one hand lifting to rub an ear gingerly. Even Colette flinched slightly. Definitely well fed enough to power a yell like that.

"It's true. One of the locals spoke of his returning home after delivering his passenger here." Raine clarified calmly. Lyla fisted her hands and held them up with a determined look on her face.

"Now's my chance! I've got him this time!" she declared and suddenly rushed past the group and out the door, startling her grandmother in the process. Kratos gave a little huff of exasperation, looking like he'd rather just drag the Chosen to the seals himself and not put up with all these complications.

"Hey, she's heading for the docks." Lloyd remarked, leaning out another window to watch her dash off. Genis shook his head with a sigh, hands lifting in a shrug.

"I guess we should go after her. She might lead us to where Aifread went." he suggested and Adam found himself being pulled along by the wrist as the group gave chase after the girl. He blinked and glanced at who it was that was dragging him, and internally groaned at the realization that it was Lloyd. Should he even bother to be surprised by that anymore?

He tried to pull Lloyd's hand off, but the brunet just gripped tighter, shooting back a warning glare over his shoulder as he followed Genis and Kratos, the two faster members of the party. "I'm not going to vanish after I've come this far with you!" Adam protested in frustration, "But there is still something I have to do!" He needed to share some recipes with these people, fulfill his duty as Wonder Chef and get the villagers started on a diet that would restore their health.

"Do it at the docks!" Lloyd shot back, and didn't lessen his hold even when they'd arrived there. At the end of one pier, Lyla was busily arguing with Max, shaking a letter at him almost violently. Even from that distance they all could hear her yelling at him to take the letter to Aifread in Luin. Adam stiffened at the name before forcing himself to relax and try tugging his hand free.

"Let go. I have to spread recipes and teach these people to cook fish in a way that will make them healthier." he demanded softly just as Lyla turned her head and noticed them, her eyes lighting up with an idea.

"Huh? Why?" Lloyd asked distractedly, moving forward with the rest of the group to talk to the girl.

"You people, excuse me! Can you deliver this letter for me?" Lyla called out as they approached her, waving the paper towards them.

"It's what I'm supposed to do, Lloyd. Let go!" the chef urged, pulling even harder. Lloyd was ignoring him, his eyes focused on the brunette. Adam could just _feel_ his heart racing, panic rising as he tried harder to get loose. His head pounded and all he could think was _'Get away, get away, get away'_, over and over, spinning in circles in his mind.

* * *

"We can't deliver it if we can't cross the ocean." the dual swordsman pointed out, glancing at Max almost meaningfully. "Adam, quit it." he added under his breath, pulling back on his arm. Lyla gave him a faintly arrogant look, glared at Max, then faced them again with a shrewd smile.

"If you'll deliver it, I'll have Max take you on his boat." she declared, the young man in question gaping at her in shock and horror. Raine lit up, and Lloyd could see the gleam of an idea in her eyes as Max protested in sputtering words.

"We'd be delighted to deliver your letter." the teacher remarked with a smile, reaching out to accept the envelope. Lyla returned it with a smirk, placing her letter in Raine's hands.

"Then it's settled! Go to Luin and give this to Aifread." she agreed and turned to bark at Max, "There! Now you can sail and stop giving me guff about monsters! You'll have swordsmen on board that can deal with it!"

"What? But...! L-Lyla, I...!" Max stammered and sputtered and then finally wilted under her glares, "Okay, okay... I'll go. Dammit..." Lyla huffed, hands on her hips.

"You should have just said that from the start." she told him and started to walk away, passing through the group. She paused by Lloyd and gave him a strange look, glancing past him before focusing on his face. "Hey, kid. Your friend doesn't look all that great." she told him, "Make sure he gets his act together before you set sail."

Lloyd blinked as she left, puzzled. _'Man, she's pushy.'_ Then he felt the frantic tugging and turned to look the other way, directing his attention to Adam just as Genis let out an alarmed cry.

The other boy was shaking, his visible eye wide and almost unseeing as he gasped for air, desperately yanking on his own arm to get free. Lloyd opened his hand, aghast at what was happening, and Adam immediately pulled his arm close against his chest, almost curling in on himself to hide away from the brunet. Uncertain of what just took place, Lloyd tried to reach out and lay a hand comfortingly on the other blonde's shoulder, but Adam just jerked away from him.

"Lloyd, I know you meant well in trying to help him get over his aversion, but you may have taken this attempt too far." Raine told him in that firm tone of voice that meant he had done wrong but wasn't in real trouble yet, not while he had a chance to fix things. "We have secured passage to Palmacosta, but we won't be able to leave until Adam has calmed down. Let's take this time to resupply what we can." She looked over at Kratos, who didn't seem at all affected by the scene before him. "Would you mind looking after the Wonder Chef for now? I'll take the children to the shops here and see what we can find."

Whatever answer Kratos gave, Lloyd didn't hear, or perhaps he just didn't care to hear. All he could do was stand there, feeling horribly guilty as Adam shook like a leaf in the wind, arms held close to his body. He wanted to do something to make up for it, wanted to apologize in some way, but all he knew what to do involved touch in some way. A hug, a pat on the shoulder, a squeeze of the hand... none of these would help the chef. Colette was giving him a concerned look, mouth partially open as though on the brink of saying something but not knowing **what** to say.

The Sage siblings were already walking towards a fishmonger's stall set against a low swell of a hill that sloped down before it gave way to docks. Genis looked back at him worriedly, eyes glancing over to Adam for a second before returning to his face. Had their friendships with him been damaged somehow? By Lloyd's mistake in holding onto him for too long and too tightly?

"I'm sorry." he mumbled to the blonde, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked down at his feet in shame. Colette moved to his side and tugged on his sleeve, and he finally moved on, walking to join the Sages with her, but not before looking back over his shoulder one last time. Kratos had moved to stand in front of Adam, probably to talk to him or something. Lloyd still couldn't figure out how the other boy went from being scared out of his head of the mercenary to being able to deal with him around. He just hoped everything would be okay by the time they got ready to set sail.

* * *

In an hour, they were boarding the boat to set sail for Palmacosta. Genis was eager to get the journey underway again, and not even Raine's soft groan at being forced to be in a ship could dampen his spirits. Everyone was taking up a spot for themselves on the deck, looking out over the ocean and enthusing over the fact that they were actually going to be sailing. The little half-elf grinned broadly, looking at all of his friends before his gaze fell on Adam, the smile slipping a bit.

The chef had finally calmed and put himself back into proper order, but sat as far from the rest of them as he could, gazing out at the water with his chin resting in one hand. Whatever Kratos had done to get him relaxed could only go so far; the mercenary would go over every now and then, say something to him, then walk away to stay close to Colette.

As the sail was raised, Raine curled up in a miserable ball at the base of the mast, eyes shut tight and with Noishe curled up beside her, and Genis felt the giddiness of sailing bubble up again. He jumped up and down excitedly, unable to help himself. "We're at sea! We're at sea!" he cried out joyfully. Lloyd stood at the bow, turning back to give him a playful glare.

"Settle down, this thing's tiny. Do you want to fall out?" he teased, "A fish might come along and gobble you up!" Genis stuck his tongue out in return, noting faintly that the brunet still had the tense air of guilt around him. He gave Adam a look of concern, then turned back forward to talk with Colette. Genis figured he didn't want to cause any extra harm, not after Kratos had given him a hard look after finishing his talk with the Wonder Chef.

"Gee, I'm so sorry my ship is too 'tiny' for you." Max grumbled irritably, standing at the helm with a pout. Colette giggled, clapping her hands together.

"This is fun! Your ship is fun, sir!" she called back with a wave. The journey was back on track again. Genis felt relief for that, and decided to go and see how Adam was doing. Just because Lloyd screwed up didn't mean that things couldn't still be salvaged, right?

Genis made his way to the chef's side and gingerly reached out to poke him in the shoulder, small fingers pressing through the soft fabric of his sleeve. Adam gave a small start, a gasp of surprise escaping him, before turning his head to blink at him. "Oh. Hello, Genis. Did you need something?" he asked in a genuinely curious tone.

The half-elf wanted to ask a lot of things, a jumble of questions on the tip of his tongue. Had Lloyd hurt him? Did he still want to be their friend? Was he mad or upset? Was he okay now? What did Kratos say to him? So many questions, and yet Genis couldn't put a voice to them. Not without possibly bringing up the bad memory of that whole event again. So he closed his mouth, frowned a bit, then blinked as the perfect ice-breaker came to mind. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the little slip of paper that Adam had given him while they were walking to Lyla's house.

"I was wondering if I could add some other ingredients to your rice ball recipe. The method of cooking you have for it is really impressive, but the ingredients seem a little lacking." Genis pointed out and smiled at the way the chef's eyes lit up, a look of relief on his face that spoke volumes for the half-elf's choice of subject.

"That's perfectly fine, Genis. In fact, the reason why I left the ingredients sparse was so that each of you could make the dish in your own way." Adam explained cheerfully, turning in place to face the boy as Genis sat down and held the paper in his hands, "Your style of cooking is different from Professor Sage's, and hers is different from Kratos's..."

"_Way_ different." Genis agreed wryly, glancing back at his sister, who only glared at him before burying her face back into her knees. Adam laughed uncertainly.

"Yes, well, I wanted you all to cook according to your inherent styles. That makes the effects of the recipe much stronger and more varied." he explained, gesturing towards the little slip in Genis's hands, "What I gave you is the foundation for the recipe, the basics; it's up to you to make it your own recipe, and give it additional strength and benefits." Genis nodded with a determined grin, looking over the recipe in his hand. He was already thinking of what else he could put in to make the dish even tastier than this probably was alone. Then another thought struck him.

"Hey, Adam, if that's true, then wouldn't this be at its very strongest if you were the one who cooked it?" the half-elf asked curiously. Adam gave him an uncertain look, but slowly nodded in agreement. "Then wouldn't it make more sense if we had you make all the meals so we'd be at our best all the time?" Genis suggested and tilted his head at Adam's grimace, "What?"

"You'd be right, actually, but that's not what the Wonder Chef is for." he murmured, "I teach the recipes, share them and demonstrate them, but I can't just stay in one place and continuously cook them for people. No one learns to sustain themselves if I do that. My cooking is strongest, yes, but I'm only one person." He gestured out at the world. "All of Sylvarant could really use healthy recipes, ways of cooking that makes the best use of the limited resources we have. But I can't cook for a whole world all on my own." Genis nodded, gazing out at the ocean.

"I hadn't thought of it like that, but yeah. We can't expect you to feed everybody by yourself; that's impossible!" he agreed and looked over the paper again. The writing was neat and easy to read, the same handwriting Adam used in his placement homework. "Did you write this recipe yourself?" The chef nodded, folding his arms on the edge of the ship's protective rail and gazing back out at the water. "So, you came up with it all on your own?" Genis asked, eyes wide with surprise. Adam looked back at him with a strange expression, there and gone in almost the same instant, brows furrowing slightly.

"Ah, well. That's... a little complicated." he returned carefully, and the half-elf got the feeling that this was something else that he didn't want to talk about. Why? Wasn't he proud of his recipes? Or did someone else write these and he didn't like taking the credit for them? Genis let the subject drop, shaking his head and taking up his own spot by the chef to watch the waves and the gulls with a smile.

"Have you been to Palmacosta before? It's the biggest city in the world, you know!" he suddenly remarked, turning his head to grin hugely at Adam. The chef blinked at him in surprise, then laughed, and it seemed like everything was all right again.

* * *

The trip to reach Palmacosta took only two days. It would have been longer with monster attacks if not for whatever it was that Adam did to the boat. Colette had watched it all herself, fascinated by the events unfolding before her that first day on Max's boat. After Adam had gotten back into the group without much fuss -and Lloyd had apologized a few more times, especially after Raine and Kratos both got on him over scaring him in the first place- Max had warned them all to keep as quiet as possible to avoid attracting monsters.

Adam had perked at that, talked to Max for a little bit, then went into the tiny cabin for a while, carrying his travel pack with him. No one was very sure what he was doing, although Colette thought she heard wood hitting metal, but no one else seemed to hear it so she figured it was just her imagination. It took a couple of hours, but Adam came back out with a few jars of something kind of soupy, like broth, in his arms.

"I've punctured holes into the lids." he had said and gave the jars to Max, "Tie a rope around a jar and lower it into the water so it hangs in our wake. It'll keep monsters away for a while, but it won't last too long, so use them one after another." Max had looked a little dubious, but went along with it and for all the time they were at sea no monsters came near them.

Raine came out of her ball just long enough to ask what was in the jars and how they were keeping monsters away, then turned green and curled up again when the boat rocked suddenly from a large wave. Noishe just whimpered, massive ears flicking in response.

"I bet it's a soup that monsters don't like to eat, so they'll stay away from the ship." Colette suggested with a smile. It seemed like it made the most sense and Adam's smile told her she was probably right too. "Wow, that's amazing! But I kinda wish there was a soup that monsters _do_ like to eat." she added thoughtfully, "I mean, it wouldn't be fair for us to enjoy the Wonder Chef's cooking and the monsters don't get to have a taste too."

"You're right. I hadn't thought of that." Adam had remarked with a look of dawning realization on his face, a blush coloring his cheeks, "I'll research recipes for monsters once I've finished spreading these recipes, all right, Colette?" And she beamed happily at him. He really was very kind. She hoped she was successful in regenerating the world so Lloyd and Genis and everyone could live happily and Adam could go and make delicious food for everyone, even monsters.

The ship dropped anchor in the docks of Palmacosta and everyone got off with all their things, thanking Max for the trip. Raine was first to get off, running down the ramp and dashing for the cobbled surface of the port with Lloyd's strange dog hot on her heels. Kratos stayed close to Colette, walking beside her as they disembarked, with Lloyd and Genis following them. Adam stayed on the ship just long enough to make another batch of soup jars and then give a paper to Max.

"I wasn't able to do this for Izoold earlier, so please share this list of recipes with everyone in the village." he told the captain, "It will make the best use of the seafood you have in stock and allow everyone to eat a healthier diet to regain their strength." Max accepted the page with a nod.

"After seeing what your soup did to scare off monsters, I'll believe that. You wouldn't have that recipe on here too?" he asked, but the other blonde shook his head.

"Unfortunately, it's a Wonder Chef Family secret. I can't share it easily, but I've made enough to last your ship and perhaps two others for a few days." he replied, "It should do the job until the fishermen have gained enough strength from the recipes to be able to handle fighting any monsters once the supply runs out." With that, and a little wave of good luck, Adam jumped from the ship directly to land lightly on the dock.

"So what are you gonna do now, Max?" Lloyd called up once everyone was off. Colette stood by him, blinking up at the captain in concern. Yes, what was he going to do? If he used the soup now, on the way back, there might not be enough for the other fishing boats for that long. Max waved back at them.

"I'll request escort from a Palmacosta warship or something. Save on your cook's soups so we can use them back in Izoold." he returned and lifted his hand again in farewell, "You take care out there!" Lloyd mirrored the gesture and Colette waved eagerly as well.

"Be careful going home! I hope you catch lots of fish!" she called back cheerfully and then the group finally started making their way into Palmacosta proper, ready to search for clues to the next seal. She hummed cheerfully to herself, then blinked and gave a little yelp before darting forward to catch Adam's sleeve in her fingers. "You're not going to vanish on us again right away, are you?" Colette asked worriedly, "After what happened in Izoold, can you wait until we've gone to an inn so we know where to meet up?"

Blue eyes met blue eyes with surprise, and Raine stepped in with her arms folded over her chest, stern expression on her face. "I agree with Colette. This is the first time any of us have been to this city, and I'd like to avoid a repeat of the Izoold incident." she told him firmly, ignoring his wince, "Rather than immediately disappearing, it would be best for us all to find a central location to meet so you have a place to return to in the event something goes wrong." He looked between the two of them, first Raine's stern look, then Colette's own worried one, then he looked up at Lloyd and Kratos, both of them giving him matching glares, and finally sighed in defeat.

"All right. I won't hide right away. Once we find an inn, however, I **will** find my hiding spot for this city." Adam relented, "I may not have come here personally, but I've seen images of various locations. That's all I need to hide myself."

Once that was settled, Colette cheerfully walked along beside her friends, gazing out at the market stalls set up right on the port. Shiny new weapons and armors were on display, and food merchants shouted for people to come and sample their wares and buy plenty of ingredients. She giggled when she saw Adam look towards them with interest.

"I could use a new pair of swords." Lloyd suddenly remarked with a grin, wandering over to one of the stalls and examining their wares. Kratos paused and looked back at him with a frown just as Raine spun around with a huff.

"Lloyd Irving, we don't have time to window shop!" she declared, scowling further when Genis loped over to join the brunet. Colette hung back just a little longer, then couldn't resist anymore, hurrying forward with a laugh and a trailing apology to the Professor. There were so many new and amazing things for sale; she wanted to see them all while she could.

Eventually, the more mature members of the group joined them, and Colette smiled as she watched Kratos examine a pair of rapiers before consenting to buying them for Lloyd, the brunet lighting up like he'd just received his birthday and Mithos Day presents all at once. Then he went and swiped Adam's frying pan and turned it over to the customization shop man despite the chef's protests. He got it back after a few minutes with a better handle and some good polishing, and Colette couldn't help but laugh at the halfhearted glare Adam kept giving Lloyd as he clutched the improved frying pan.

New armors were purchased, old ones sold, and Kratos tallied the amount he'd lost from his mercenary's pay with a slight frown while Raine tried to get Adam to wear the circlet they'd bought for him, finally slapping him over the head when he refused to pull his hands down to let her get the ring of metal on him. Eventually he just took the circlet, promised he'd put it on once they were at the inn, and went back to the food stall. Genis was standing by Colette, watching the exchange take place with a thoughtful look on his face.

"I wonder if it has something to do with what I saw in Izoold?" he murmured to himself, but Colette could hear it as clearly as if he'd said it out loud. She winced and rubbed at her ears. What was going on? Was this also part of her trials in becoming an angel? But if that was the case, why hadn't it faded yet?

She let the matter drop in favor of tagging after Lloyd, who followed Adam to the food stall to pester him some more. It was nice to see that they were still friends, even after that scary moment those few days ago. She picked up a few eggs, rolling them in her fingers to check for cracks in their shells as Adam seemingly ignored the brunet and talked with the merchant about his ingredients, the other man beaming at having a chat with someone who seemed to know a lot about food. The other blonde already had a basket loaded with fresh rolls and sacks of rice and pasta, and various other ingredients.

"I'm the mysterious gourmet! The Wonder Chef!" someone declared nearby, and Adam froze in place, eyes widening in surprise before narrowing. Colette felt a sudden chill at seeing that. It didn't seem right; he was a kind and cute and sweet person. He shouldn't have to look like that at all!

"Excuse me." Adam remarked flatly and handed the basket to the merchant before turning around and marching straight towards the source of that voice, a boisterous man in a dirty apron who was laughing to himself as a few onlookers paused to tilt their heads and wait to see what else he would do. Lloyd and Colette glanced at one another, then hurried to follow after him. The last thing they needed was for something to happen and then have the local authorities be mad at them.

Apparently, they weren't the only ones who heard what was going on. Colette spotted Kratos, Raine and Genis approaching quickly, gazes falling on the little blonde chef who had marched right up to the bigger man, planted his hands on his hips and glared up at his imposter.

"Sir. I don't know who you are or why you thought that was a good idea, but please don't claim to be me." he told the man firmly, "Deceiving these people won't help them, and it makes it harder for me to teach them recipes." The cook blinked down at him blearily, rubbed his eyes, then blinked at him again. Even from where she stood, Colette could smell the familiar odor of Potion -such a grown-up sounding version of the word to describe that adult drink used in religious ceremonies- but she didn't know that people could just drink it to excess like that. She wondered how Adam could stand being that close to the smell. "Clearly, you've had too much to drink. If you'd like, I could make something to help restore you, but you really shouldn't..."

"Did someone lose a kid?" the cook finally called out, looking around himself at the crowd, "The Wonder Chef can't be held responsible for children!" Adam clapped his mouth shut, glared at him again, then sighed harshly.

"Well, if you insist on doing that, at least let me use you for my own purpose." he muttered under his breath and Colette's eyes widened. How was she able to hear that so clearly? She watched as the other blonde dug around in his pocket and pulled something out, gazing down at it thoughtfully. He stayed that way for a few moments, then squared his shoulders and marched over to the man again. When the other cook wasn't looking, Adam slipped the little thing into his apron pocket and then quickly backed away, walking back to the rest of the party with a look of relief.

He didn't say anything to them, not really, but he gave her and Lloyd a quick smile in passing before he went on to the food stall again, picking up his chat with the slightly confused merchant like he hadn't even left in the first place. They kept looking after him, puzzled, as Raine, Genis and Kratos joined them, their heads turned to follow his movements as well.

"What did he do to that cook, I wonder?" Raine murmured, eyes narrowing slightly in suspicion. Colette pursed her mouth together, worried by the whole scene. She watched the other blonde finish paying for the basket of ingredients, then begin heading back to them.

"I think he gave that cook something, but I couldn't see what it was." Lloyd told their teacher, and put on a wide smile once Adam joined up with them again, "So did you get everything done?" The blonde smiled at them both, looking more at ease than they could recall seeing him since they started traveling together.

"Oh, yes. I'm feeling much better about things now." he remarked cheerfully, then gave a sheepish laugh, "Just... try not to grab me again, Lloyd. I'm not fond of public breakdowns." Lloyd made a face at that and Colette couldn't help but laugh.

"Aw, man, Adam! I said I was sorry, like, a hundred times!" he protested, "Haven't you forgiven me for that already?"

"Lloyd, I think he just did." Genis added in dryly, and as they continued walking into Palmacosta proper, Colette found herself growing more comfortable with the other blonde around again. Whatever that strange feeling was that had invaded her the morning he vanished in Izoold must have just been a one time thing. Yes, everything was going to be all right now.

* * *

They walked down the cobbled path, looking around at the various buildings to see which of them were, in fact, places they could stay for a night or so, or at least treat as a meeting place for later. Lloyd kept his eyes on the back of Adam's head, watching the other blonde like a hawk to be sure he didn't just vanish. Every now and then, the chef would look back at him nervously, uncertainty on his face. Lloyd gave a little jump when a hand came down on his shoulder, snapping him out of his watchfulness, and looked up to see Kratos frowning down at him.

"There's no need to focus on him quite so fiercely, Lloyd." the mercenary told him in that same infuriatingly neutral tone, "He's already sworn to stay with the group until we've found a common meeting point." Scowling slightly, Lloyd opened his mouth to say something... and instead flinched at the sound of bodies colliding and glass shattering, looking forward in time to see Colette and a pretty young woman groan softly in pain from having bumped into each other. Nearby was a large burgundy puddle of liquid, the remnants of a glass container scattered around.

"...There she goes again." Genis remarked with a roll of his eyes as the other woman's companions -a swordsman in armor with spiky hair, a kind of stupid-looking young man in clothes too small for his body, and a woman dressed in pale blue mage's clothes- all stared at Colette in surprise, registering shock first before anything else.

"Owww! What did you do that for?" the young woman sitting on the ground snapped at Colette in irritation. The blonde yelped and got to her feet quickly, the other woman doing the same and dusting off her dress as she stood.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Colette exclaimed in apology, and Lloyd moved forward to stand by her and check out what exactly happened. From the way things looked, the other group was walking down another path that ended up going right across their own path, and the building next to them kept them from seeing one another until it was too late. Simple mistake. It was no big deal, right?

Apparently it was, as the woman moved back, spotted the puddle of liquid and gave a cry of dismay, hands flying up to her cheeks and eyes widening. "Aaah! The Palma Potion we just received!" she exclaimed, "You broke it!" Her companions noticed as well, and the startled looks quickly became glares. Lloyd stiffened, wondering if they were going to pick a fight about it. The other swordsman definitely looked like he was spoiling for one, scowling right at Colette.

"Hey, lady! That was a very valuable Potion!" he pointed out angrily, "How are you planning on making up for this?" The Chosen blinked in surprise, then pressed her hands together over her heart, a determined look on her face.

"I'll buy a replacement Potion right away. I'm really sorry for breaking it." she told them, but it seemed like the other young man wasn't going to agree with that. If nothing else, he scowled harder, looking like he'd just been insulted. Lloyd was finding it harder to keep quiet about things. He would have said something sooner, but a good amount of his attention was in keeping his grip on Adam's cape, as the young chef had tried to bolt the moment things grew tense around the two parties.

"A _replacement_ Potion?" the swordsman scoffed, "Do you seriously think that's going to be enough? What part of 'very valuable' did you not get?" Oh, that was **it**. Lloyd rolled his eyes and gave one last tug on the cape to get Adam back in line beside him.

"Oh, come on, now you just sound like an idiot." the brunet retorted, glaring at the other man in disdain, "It's just a stupid Potion; it's not like she broke your girlfriend's legs or anything." The pretty woman scowled at him, running her fingers through her short dark hair, cut in a bob that flattered her face.

"He is **not** my boyfriend." she growled under her breath. The swordsman fumed, eyes narrowing as he stepped forward, fists clenched.

"What did you say? Do you know **who** we are?" he demanded hotly and Lloyd huffed, shrugging in that same disdainful air.

"And I should care because...?" he let the sentence hang. Really, what was up with these guys? Acting all high and mighty and full of themselves, and to Colette, of all people! She was the Chosen; they should be falling all over themselves to ask _her_ for forgiveness!

"Why, you little-!" the man snarled and his hand went to the hilt of his sword. Lloyd heard Kratos do the same behind him and quickly followed suit, one hand going to a sword in preparation to draw. His mind raced, surprised by all that was going on. Were they really going to fight here? Over a broken bottle of Potion?

"Wait!" Adam blurted out, holding up his hands for calm. All eyes went to him in a mix of confusion and surprise. Lloyd stared at him, puzzled. He'd let go of the other boy's cape in order to ready himself for a fight, and to be honest the brunet expected him to have run away by now. "We don't have to fight or hurt anyone." the chef went on carefully, a thoughtful expression on his face as if he was still trying to plan something out while he talked, "You're saying that you want something valuable to make up for the lost Potion, correct?"

"That would be acceptable, yes. I'd like to leave here as soon as possible, so it would be best to avoid unnecessary trouble." the mage woman agreed in a more calculated tone, "What did you have in mind?" Lloyd tilted his head, glancing over at the woman before looking up at Raine to see what she had to say about it.

"If that's the case, then let's hear what Adam has to suggest." the teacher went on, folding her arms over her chest as she gazed at the other blonde with that look on her face that Lloyd recognized. It was that same look she got when she was studying something other than a ruin.

"Well, if the Potion isn't enough to equal the value of the one that was lost," Adam remarked slowly, "then what if we added another item that was rare and valuable as well?"

There was silence for a while, everyone just looking at him and then looking at one another with raised eyebrows. Lloyd scratched at the back of his head, searching through his memory for anything that could be like that in their inventory of items. Besides the Exspheres and Key Crests, he couldn't really think of anything. He lifted his head and gave Adam an exasperated sigh. "We don't **have** anything like that, Adam!" he protested and the other boy shook his head.

"You don't, but I do." he amended and gestured towards the other party, "Well? Is that a deal? A replacement Potion and a rare item from me, and we'll call this whole matter resolved?"

The swordsman huffed, letting his hand fall from his sword as he turned to discuss it with the mage and the pretty woman. They glanced over at Adam now and then as they whispered, and Lloyd felt himself bristle at that, moving to step closer to the other blonde's side. Colette shifted in place nervously, glancing back and forth between Lloyd and the other group. Eventually, they nodded in unison and turned to face Lloyd and Adam.

"It's a deal." the pretty woman decided with a smug smile, one hand lifting from where she had her own arms folded across her chest to cup a cheek in an attempt to look coy, "Another Potion and the chef's item, and we'll pretend this never happened."

Both Adam and Colette looked relieved, smiling at one another a little sheepishly, and Lloyd smacked his palm against his forehead. "Fine, whatever. But only because doing it will make these two happy." he grumbled and the group began walking away towards the shops to find another Potion, "Geez, I don't get you two at all. Why would you pay for another Potion for them, Colette?" He really couldn't understand it. She hadn't meant to break it, and it was just a bottle of something that made people drunk. As far as he was concerned, it was a good thing it broke; they didn't need more drunk people in the world.

"It was my fault, so I have to make up for it." Colette returned firmly, blue eyes sparkling with determination, "I should have been more careful, so this is only fair." Her gaze went to Adam next, the other blonde walking on Lloyd's other side. "I'm sorry you're going to lose something valuable because of me, Adam. If I had been paying more attention..."

"Ah, don't worry, Colette! It will be fine!" Adam hurriedly tried to assure her, chuckling awkwardly as he held up his hands to ward off more apologies, "It's for a good cause, so I don't mind at all." Lloyd sighed, rubbing the back of his neck at the exchange.

"Geez, you two really **are** like twins. You even apologize the same!" he declared, and just because he was annoyed enough to do it Lloyd poked a finger into the side of Adam's neck and ran off at the sound of the blonde's startled yelp and Raine's exasperated shout.

* * *

The first shop they entered made Raine want to walk right back out. Unfortunately, they couldn't really do that with the company being dealt with inside. They had just come in right in the middle of an argument between one of the shopkeepers and a pair of Desians. Raine heard a soft gasp of alarm, and turned her head just in time to see Adam dart back out the door. Lloyd was completely unaware, standing stiff and glaring furiously at the Desians before them. Why had Adam run off? He had encountered Desians before with Lloyd back in Triet, so had his experiences with them been enough to make him flee them on sight?

But he and Lloyd had both gone through the base together, and the only difference in treatment had been that Lloyd was to be executed and Adam had been tended to medically. They had wanted him to work in their kitchens. So he'd been given kinder treatment; why would he flee because of that?

For that matter, why would he be treated with care by Desians to begin with? Suspicion made her narrow her eyes and she looked back in time to catch the last of the argument.

"Just try it!" the shopgirl, Chocolat if Raine heard correctly, declared haughtily, "As long as Governor-General Dorr is around, we'll never submit to you filthy Desians! Now get out!" The Desians growled, and one scoffed in displeasure.

"We'll be reporting this to Lord Magnius. Depending on his mood, you might or might **not** get to keep that pretty little head of yours." he drawled and turned to march out the door with his partner not far behind, passing right through the group. Raine turned her head nervously to keep her face from being seen, as did Genis and Colette. Lloyd and Kratos both kept their stances, matching glares of near hostility following the lightly armored soldiers out the door.

Chocolat plastered on a smile like nothing ever happened, turning to her mother, the other shopkeeper, as she straightened her ponytail. "Well then, I'm off to work now, Mom." she remarked brightly, "We've got customers and I have lots to do." The older woman nodded, looking very concerned by the heated argument.

"Take care." she urged and Raine watched the brunette nod and walk past them all to leave, giving small waves and friendly smiles to try to put them at ease before heading out the door. The woman sighed, face a bit drawn from hidden pain, then put on her own facade of a smile as she focused on them all. "I apologize for what happened. I'm sure you were startled." she told the group as they stepped forward to enter the shop fully, "Please, relax and take a look around. I hope to be of service."

"Aw man, where'd Adam go?" Lloyd finally noticed the other blonde had gone and was looking around with a frustrated expression. Raine looked to the doorway, frowning as the young Wonder Chef stepped back in with a nervous expression, glancing around in quick, searching sweeps before sighing silently in relief. "Hey! You said you wouldn't run off till we found a hotel!" Lloyd declared, stomping a foot forward in his direction. Adam flashed him a quick smile of apology, forced and tight, before moving forward to look into the glass displays at the sweets and gels, his eyes widening as he knelt to take a better look.

"Are these real chocolate bon-bons?" he asked, looking up at the woman and pointing at the shelves of sweets. She nodded.

"They were made with my mother's recipes." the shopkeeper added, and Raine could see the hurt in her eyes grow a little deeper. Adam stood and gazed at the sweets a bit longer before looking over at the woman again.

"Then you must be Cacao. My father studied under your mother for a while, remember?" he asked and pointed at himself, "I am the Wonder Chef, and I would like to humbly request to study here as well." The party looked at him in surprise, Raine's eyebrows furrowing slightly as she considered his words. Genis looked a little hurt by that as well.

"Adam! Are you really going to leave us so soon?" he protested. Cacao shook her head sadly.

"I'm sorry, but my mother is no longer here to give lessons. What we have is all that remains of her recipes and teachings." she returned and then gave the blonde a more considering look, "So, you're the little boy that would come to visit with the previous Wonder Chef, the Little Chef. I never knew your real name was Adam; it's a good name for you." She tilted her head as she gazed at him. "What color is my hair?" she suddenly asked. Raine blinked. Why would the shopkeeper ask him such an obvious and inane question as that?

Adam chuckled. "A lovely cocoa color, befitting of your name, _Zia_." he replied with a smile, "No need to test me after so many years. Besides, isn't that what frustrated Chocolat so much?" He brightened and turned to Colette. "That's right, we need to find Palma Potion, don't we?" he asked and the Chosen nodded.

"Yes, do you have any Potion for sale?" Colette asked Cacao, hopping in place with fervent enthusiasm. The woman nodded and gestured towards a shelf behind her, displaying several bottles of the rich liquid.

"They're one thousand gald each. Would you be purchasing one today?" she asked with a smile.

Raine tuned out the conversations going on to focus on what her thoughts. At the first sign of the Desians, Adam fled the group; yet he was treated with more care and kindness by them in the base than Lloyd had been. He knew this shopkeeper through his father, and she had tested him with a question about her hair color, a test that he said he no longer needed. That was rather obvious; Adam had not given any indication that he had troubles with discerning colors.

So many mysteries surrounded that boy. Raine wasn't sure if it was such a good idea to let him continue traveling with them and Colette. But she had yet to give any sign to the contrary, and knowing Colette she never would, and Lloyd seemed dead-set on keeping him around to break his aversion to touch.

By the time she returned to awareness of the world, it was to find that the group was beginning to leave the shop. Genis tugged at her hand to get her to come along.

"Kratos said he wasn't going to pay for the Potion and Colette said she'd rather earn the money to pay for it herself anyway." her brother reported while walking beside her, the party heading further down the cobbled street towards Palmacosta's central plaza. "Cacao mentioned the cafeteria at the Palmacosta Academy needed some help, so Colette and Adam want to go check it out." He grinned up at her. "Also this place is run by Governor-General Dorr, and he's building up a militia to fight the Desians so the people here are protected from them. Isn't that great, Sis?"

"A resistance to the Desians? Here?" Raine mused aloud, eyebrows furrowing thoughtfully. That didn't sound right, not with the way Desians usually reacted to defiance of that nature. Either way, if he was the city's leader, then he was someone they would need to speak with to see if there was any information about possible Seals in the area. Hopefully, nowhere near water again...

* * *

Upon entering the plaza, the group was able to catch sight of the much lauded Governor-General, a tall man of graying blonde hair and beard, dressed in the most ornate of Sylvaranti clothes, all soft cotton cloth and furs dyed in the richest colors. Beside him was a small girl with her tawny hair up in pigtails and wearing a lovely violet dress with matching coat. They both spoke to a young boy, comforting him as the youngster whimpered, then moving on to a large brick and stonework building that dominated the plaza view. The boy trudged away, head held high despite the obvious wanting to cry some more.

Adam didn't like it here, not one bit. There was something to Palmacosta that didn't settle right with him. The air was heavy with the salty tang of the ocean, but there was an underlying scent and _feel_ that made his skin crawl. Blood and fear and anger and misery, the atmosphere seemed to choke him. He shook it off as best he could when he caught sight of Kratos watching him from askance and focused instead on the civilians around them. It was easy to observe the people as they walked towards the Palmacosta Academy. They smiled at one another in greeting and seemed very friendly. Adam focused more on their physical figures.

Rather plump, some not so but getting there, rounded faces; the food situation in Palmacosta was much better than in Izoold. It was a larger port city and apparently developed technologies better than what was currently used elsewhere in Sylvarant. So he shouldn't have to worry about there being enough food here to feed everyone. Instead, Adam would have to go about spreading recipes that reduced the portions the people ate while still giving them all the nutrition they needed and feel satisfied with the meals. That would be a little tricky, but he felt fairly confident he could pull that off. He wouldn't be the Wonder Chef if he couldn't.

"Man, that's a big school." Lloyd muttered, gazing up at the tall building that proclaimed itself to be the Palmacosta Academy. Adam quickly pulled his gaze away from the people and back to Lloyd, blinking at the brunet dumbly before looking up at the school. That's right, they were here to earn money to buy the Potion by working at the cafeteria. It seemed almost unreal, the idea of working in a school cafeteria. Oh well, he couldn't be expected to go to the Family for money now, could he? Not after he stuffed his communicator into that drunk imposter's apron so the Family would go chasing after someone else in his place.

The group entered the building and looked around at the nicely decorated school, watching students bustle about the halls and stairs. Adam reached out and put a hand against the wall, breathing in deeply as he closed his eyes. This place felt good, energetic and active and full of ambition. He smiled and opened his eyes again, picking up the pace as he followed Lloyd and Genis towards the main foyer of the building. The brunet was already looking vastly out of place with his surroundings.

"Say, Genis, weren't you supposed to go to this school?" he finally asked, looking down at his best friend. Genis nodded as he looked around, taking in the studious atmosphere.

"Yeah... I was given a recommendation after one of their teachers passed through Iselia to give Raine some new textbooks." he agreed, and his words made one passing student, dressed in a blue and beige uniform and square black glasses, suddenly stop and balk.

"You? A child this tiny given a recommendation to the elite Palmacosta Academy?" the older boy declared in outrage, "A likely story!" As Lloyd immediately came to Genis's defense, Adam tuned them out and studied the open space beneath the stairs. It looked familiar... wait, wasn't that one of the images he was shown before he left home? He frowned slightly, sifting through his memory until that particular one came forth. Yes, it was. This place was in the list of viable hiding places and it was a very good candidate because of its location.

"Fine! He'll take your challenge!" Lloyd's sudden boisterous shout brought the chef's attention back to him with a startled expression. He was glaring at the other boy that had made fun of Genis, the smaller boy looking pretty taken aback as well. "You're nothing against Genis!"

"I'll have you know that I'm the highest ranked student in this school! You're gonna regret it!" the student declared arrogantly, "Meet me in the classroom at the end of the second floor hallway, **if** you still think you can handle the exam challenge." A second student that had stopped with him made a face and quickly whispered in his senior's ear. The older boy grimaced, then nodded before looking back at the group. "Make it tomorrow. We're having exams today and all the classrooms are taken upstairs. But I still think you're going to drop out anyway." he amended with a huff. With that the two boys headed up the stairs to take their exams as Lloyd turned to grin broadly at Genis.

_"Lloyd~!"_ Genis drew out the name in irritation, "I haven't been studying as much as I wanted because of this journey and now you got me into an exam challenge?" When the brunet just blinked at him uncomprehendingly, the boy smacked his palm against his forehead and groaned. "We're going to have to stay here an extra day because of you!" Adam chuckled at the sight, shaking his head when Genis gave him an equally annoyed glare.

"He's just really confident in you. It's good to have that kind of trust in your abilities, isn't it?" the young Wonder Chef asked and immediately regretted it, feeling a sharp pang of irony in his own words. But he kept his smile in place as Genis's expression softened and he gave Lloyd a less baleful expression.

"Yeah, but it'd be nice to know when I'm being shoved into a challenge before it happens." he replied. Raine folded her arms over her chest, an intrigued look on her face that made Adam feel uncomfortable. He'd noticed her looking at him like that a few times before and was fairly certain she'd kept doing it at other times too, that look of testing some new theory on a hapless subject. He had the distinct feeling that **he** was that subject.

"This would be an ideal opportunity to test and see how everyone is progressing in their studies." she remarked smoothly as Kratos nodded, the Seraph looking a little sour for some reason, "We'll do some intensive training in the evening, once we've located an inn for the night." Colette turned to the teacher and bounced on her heels, a flustered expression on her face.

"Oh, but what about the cafeteria? We came to earn a thousand gald to buy the replacement Potion." she reminded them. The group nodded in agreement and continued on through the building after asking another student for directions.

.

The cafeteria was roomy and several windows provided plenty of natural light to make it feel much bigger than it really was. Tables were packed with people and the few waiters looked a bit harried from working so hard. Towards the back, at the register and standing near the entrance to the kitchen, the owner of the cafeteria glared at ceiling, hands planted on his hips as he fumed in silence. Adam looked around in shock; was **this** the trouble they were having? Several tables suddenly emptied, students leaving with frustrated looks and plates of food were barely touched.

"Wow. They really look like they need help, don't they?" Colette murmured, her eyes wide. She hurried forward, blonde hair bouncing along as she moved. "Let's go help out, Adam!" The chef stepped back, startled for a moment before recovering and darting after her. Yes, this was his world; he could be of help here. "Um, uh, mister?" Colette began to ask the annoyed man with an uncertain tone that didn't match her determined look at all, "My friend and I are trying to earn some money, and Miss Cacao said you could use some help here, and..."

She didn't have to go any further. The man looked down at her, blinked, then scratched at his chin. "Eh? Well, you look cute enough. How would you like to be a waitress? Help out by taking orders and serving the dishes to these kids? You get to keep the tips if you do well." he offered. Colette blinked, then brightened with a cheerful smile.

"Sure! I can do that! Leave it to me!" she exclaimed, giving the man a little salute. Adam smiled at her enthusiasm before turning to the man himself.

"In that case, I will take control of the kitchen." he decided, and smiled wider when the cafeteria owner gawked at him, "I am the mysterious gourmet, the Wonder Chef! Under my leadership, I'll have your cooks trained to serve high quality dishes that will draw in students and keep them healthy and ready for studying." The man stared at him blankly.

"I thought you'd be taller... and older." he returned slowly, "Those old stories said so." Adam's smile went a little strained, but the other man didn't notice, looking past him at the new wave of students coming in that had Lloyd, Genis, Raine and Kratos all hurrying to get out of the way. "No time for that; here come the customers!"

Colette scampered off to help the students and faculty find seats as well as take orders. Adam marched for the kitchen, rolling up his sleeves as his mind raced through the various recipes he had learned. Inside the kitchen was chaos, several cooks running from stove to stove with ingredients, utensils, and spices in their arms, pausing now and then to load several newly made dishes onto the counter where the waiters would hurry by to pick them up. He looked them all over quickly, pegging each one to their appropriate station, and found himself dismayed to see there was no head chef. No wonder the place was a mess!

"Stop!" Adam snapped out sharply, and the cooks all froze in place, staring at him owlishly. He pulled the Wonder Fork from his back and set it down before himself. "From right now until the end of the shift, I'm in command. We're going to have this place cleaned and serve the best food possible for everyone. Do I make myself clear?" he asked firmly and glanced around at the cooks still staring at him, "Please answer quickly! Customers are waiting!"

A chorus of 'Yes, Chef!' rang in his ears and Adam smiled again. "Well, then, let's get to work!" he exclaimed and set the fork back into its harness in order to grab a passing waiter, "You, I'm going to have to borrow you for a bit. Could you get a mop and keep the floor cleared?" Leaving the dazed young man to his new duty, Adam moved forward to each cook, pulling them to different stations and helping them clear their work areas and take stock of their ingredients. At first they didn't look too good, but the more he handled them, the better they seemed to appear. He tried not to think too hard on that; it happened with his father as well and Adam had that worrisome feeling it had something to do with being Wonder Chef.

He had just barely gotten the last of the stoves cleaned and the dirtiest of the pots and pans into the sink of bubbles and water when Colette ran up to the windowed counter where dishes were often set out. "Um, um! Adam! Order up!" she exclaimed, cheeks flushed and eyes bright with excitement, "Two bowls of curry, and a barbecue combo, and an Oriental Rice Bowl, and three cups of Yum Tea! That's everything!" The other blonde nodded, already working away at chopping carrots beside one of the cooks, a redhead who watched him carefully before doing the same to his own set of vegetables.

"Okay, curry is one of the recipes I know, good." he breathed softly and turned over his station to the redhead, the cook looking more confident in his refined skills at chopping, "Let's go, everyone! You heard her; I want that curry going out at the same time as the combo, rice bowl and tea!" Adam all but swept over the stoves as the cooks bustled to get the pots and pans sizzling with the recipes, peering into each one with a critical eye and sampling tiny tastes of sauce and curry. "No, this isn't right. What's it missing?" he demanded at one point, holding the tasting saucer up to one of the older cooks, "Would you want this served to you? Think. What more could it use?"

"It's... not spicy enough." the cook returned thoughtfully, taking another sip at the curry sample, "Red satay, there's not enough of it. And maybe some dried peppers, for color and flavor." Adam grinned, nodding in approval before moving on to the next station. In short order, the various dishes were completed and set on the counter for pick-up.

"Colette! It's ready!" he called out, smiling brightly when the Chosen hurried up to the counter and exclaimed happily at the beautifully served dishes, vastly improved over the original meals. She gathered them up on the serving tray and hurried off, delivering them to waiting customers at various tables, where little cries of surprise and pleasure began filling the air as the students and teachers began eating heartily, enjoying their meals. They left satisfied and much happier, almost glowingly so, with generous tips, excited chatter and more people coming almost as soon as seats were emptied.

"Um, Adam! Order up!"

* * *

Genis couldn't help but stare openly at the ordered chaos before him, well aware that Raine was just as stunned and Lloyd just kept smiling like a loon, his head moving back and forth to follow their movements. Kratos was, well, being Kratos-y, just standing there against the wall with his eyes closed, waiting for everything to be done so they could leave. This was just insane, right? He was just seeing things, right?

But no, he **was** seeing it. Colette dashing around and scribbling down orders in a little pad with the other waiters and Adam calling out orders and warnings from within the kitchen, poking his head out now and then to alert the waiters that food was ready; that was really happening. And that _food_! Genis's mouth was starting to water, nose sniffing at the rich smells of cooking that replaced the earlier sting and burn of smoke and overcooked food. He wondered if his own cooking got that kind of response from people, then remembered that it usually did, especially compared to Raine's disasters.

This was amazing, though. Even Colette's usual bumbling was quickly forgiven for the simple fact that everything put down before the customers looked beautiful, tasted delicious and left them feeling full and happy with themselves and each other. The cafeteria owner had gotten over his shock and just stood there with a beaming smile, gald signs obviously spinning around his head. The register kept ringing and tips were piling up, the little satchel given to Colette by one of the waiters now full nearly to bursting.

By the time lunch ended, the reputation of the cafeteria had gotten a serious boost. The owner counted up the earnings for the day and Colette bounced her satchel of tips in her hands, eyes wide and cheeks red from the exercise and surprise that she was paid so well. Genis peeked into the kitchen, watching as the other blonde designated the cook who adjusted the curry as the new head chef. The other cooks clapped and looked much happier and more confident in themselves, even eager to get back to cooking again. Adam gave them a parting wave with a smile and headed for the door, pausing in surprise at seeing Genis waiting for him there.

"So I guess this is what you meant by what you do?" the half-elf asked, walking back to the others with him. Adam's hands were red from the work, small burns and cuts from rescuing recipes marked his arms and he gave off an air of mild exhaustion, clothes wrinkled from heat and movement, but the smile he returned was just as bright and honest as ever.

"It's what I live for. Though, to be honest, I haven't had to take command of a kitchen in a long while, so this really _was_ intensive training for me." he replied and lifted his arms for inspection, the smile turning rueful, "Really, I should have been more careful, but those weren't Wonder Cooks and I was a little out of practice..." Whatever else he was saying was overrun by Lloyd's shout of alarm. Genis looked up to see the brunet pointing at them, or rather specifically, at Adam.

"Professor Sage! Adam's been hurt! Quick, use healing magic!" he exclaimed and Genis gave him an exasperated look, unaware that Adam mirrored his expression with a softer edge.

"Geez, Lloyd, calm down. It's not even that bad." the half-elf pointed out, "A few Apple Gels or maybe even one of his recipes will have him healed in no time." He looked over at Colette, taking in her cheerful expression. "So I guess we have enough gald to get that Palma Potion?"

"Yep! I got three thousand gald in tips; isn't that amazing?" she chirped and looked around at the stares of disbelief all aimed at her, "Why is everyone looking at me like that?" The owner came over and clapped his hands on both Colette and Adam's shoulders, beaming hugely at them as the Wonder Chef froze in place, eyes widening with slowly growing panic.

"These two saved my business today! Thanks so much!" the man exclaimed, "Say, how would you two like to work here from now on? It'll be a hit; the Brother-Sister Amazing Combo!" Colette laughed nervously, looking to Raine for help.

"I'm afraid that isn't possible." Genis's sister came to the rescue, "We're currently on a journey and are merely passing through this region. Adam has already trained your cooks to continue serving to the best of their abilities and you now have the money to hire extra waiters."

"Besides, they're not brother and sister." Genis added dryly, glancing over where the man's hand stayed planted on Adam's shoulder, "And we should really get going. Adam looks pretty tired, don't you think, Sis?" Raine nodded and the owner gave them both a parting pat on the shoulders before stepping back with a more subdued grin. He waved a friendly goodbye to them as the group headed out back into the school proper. From there, they emerged into the plaza of Palmacosta and stood in the center of the pattern of brick and stone to plot their next course of action.

"It's too late in the day to talk to Governor-General Dorr or the pastor in the Church of Martel, so we'll have to meet with them tomorrow morning." Raine began appraising the situation as Genis took a couple of Gels from their supply and smeared them over the cuts and burns on Adam's arms. "Colette and Adam have earned more than enough gald to replace the Palma Potion for those people we ran into, so we should have that dealt with to avoid more problems. Then we'll find an inn and settle in for the night to rest and study for the exam challenge."

"Do as you wish." Kratos muttered with a sigh. Genis shot him a little glare before finishing off the last Gel, grinning at the healed skin left behind.

"There. How's that?" he grinned up at the blonde. Adam turned his arms over in inspection, eyebrows raised in mild surprise.

"They work almost as well as my recipes, but are much easier to obtain. I have to give them credit for that." he admitted and smiled down at him, "Thank you, Genis, for this and for helping me escape back there." Genis giggled, feeling pretty proud of himself for that too. He really liked this guy; obviously smarter than Lloyd in some respects, painfully clueless in others, but just as honest and comforting to be around as the brunet. Sometimes, Genis thought he could get a glimpse of something else, something more about the Wonder Chef that put him more at ease, but it was gone just as quickly and he chalked it up to his imagination.

"I still don't like this, but all right. Let's go get that Potion." Lloyd sighed, arms folding over his chest.

They headed back to the little shop where they met Cacao and Colette bought the bottle of Palma Potion, hugging it to herself as the party walked further down the street to where the four members of the other group stood waiting, looking pretty impatient. Genis scowled; he didn't like having to give these guys anything either, but Colette and Adam really wanted to make up with them. Sometimes, he wasn't sure if they were being too nice or just plain dumb. He blamed Lloyd's stupidity rubbing off on the both of them, and then just as quickly took it back because it wasn't really right to think that of the only people to call him a friend.

"Here you are." Colette told the swordsman as she handed over the bottle of Potion. The pretty dark-haired woman nodded, watching him tuck it away in their travel packs.

"Well, that's one. Now for the rare item to make up for the lost value..." she hinted heavily, placing her gaze squarely on Adam. Genis looked over at him worriedly, pausing only when he noticed Lloyd suddenly go tense. Why did he react like that? Lloyd could be so weird sometimes.

His focus went back to the young Wonder Chef as Adam took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, reaching into his pocket and bringing out a small green box. He held it out to the woman. "Here. It's rare and valuable to my family, but I'll give it to you to clear Colette's name." he told them. Genis took on an interested look, much the same as his sister. This was interesting; what was inside? He wondered if the lady would take it out so they could see.

At first, the pretty woman didn't seem that impressed. Then she opened the box and her eyes widened, sparkling with delight as she gave a little cry. "Oh, it's beautiful!" she exclaimed, pulling out a small gold ring with a green stone from the box. She tossed it aside almost carelessly and slipped the ring onto her finger, admiring the sparkling stone in the light of the setting sun. "It's a perfect fit! Like it was **made** for me! Oh, it's gorgeous and perfect!" she gushed happily as her companions took an initial interest in the ring, then gave her annoyed looks as she went on, "I'll _definitely_ take this!"

"Well, deal's done, then." the swordsman muttered, giving Lloyd a withering glare, "At least you're good little boys and girls. I hope you've learned your lesson and don't mess with us again." Genis joined the brunet in glaring back at the man just as furiously, even while Colette gave a demure bow and agreed to be more careful.

"Come on, we're leaving!" the mage woman declared impatiently, "Carlotta, you can gush over your new jewelry once we're on the road." The pretty woman sighed, placing her hand against her cheek thoughtfully.

"Oh, fine. But I have to say, that Governor-General Dorr sure was trusting." she murmured, glancing back at the mage, "It's hard to believe he just gave us his family treasure like that. I suppose it's one of the perks?" The stupid-looking young man rubbed at his head, face twisting as he seemed to think over that.

"Yeah, about that. What are we gonna do with it anyway?" he asked timidly, his quiet voice clashing with his bulkier build and undersized clothes. The swordsman turned on him, fists on his hips.

"You idiot, we don't have any use for that thing!" he snapped, "We're just gonna sell it to that junk-collector on Hakonesia Peak. It's nothing but dead weight anyway." He looked to Carlotta and gestured at the ring on her hand. "May as well sell that too." The woman scoffed and held her hand protectively, bringing the glittering gem closer to her.

"No way! I'm keeping this! It's the best thing we've gotten since we started!" she snapped back, "Let's just go before it gets too dark; I want to see my new ring sparkle a little longer before night falls." She gave Adam another lingering look, then turned and followed her companions down the road to one of the city gates, out of sight like they'd never been there save for the dried puddle of Potion on the cobblestones and the abandoned green ring-box.

"Goddess, what a bunch of arrogant humans." Genis growled before looking up at Colette moving to carefully clutch at Adam's hands, her eyes watering and nose sniffling.

"I'm so sorry, Adam! I didn't know you had such a pretty ring, and because of me, it's...!" she began to cry. The chef shook his head, putting on a smile for her sake even as he tugged gently to free himself. To Genis's surprise, he stopped tugging after a few moments.

_'I guess all that time of me and Lloyd poking him is actually working?'_

"It's just a ring, Colette, it didn't even matter that much to me. Really." he tried to assure her, "Every Wonder Chef is given one to take with them when they start their journeys, so it wasn't even really mine to choose." Raine stepped forward and picked up the box, examining it closely before raising an eyebrow.

"Why were you given a ring to begin with?" she asked sternly, pinning the chef with that teacher's look that made Lloyd squirm in his seat back in Iselia. Adam reacted similarly, freezing in a stance like a cornered rabbit. "This box bears the same insignia that is on your hat and cape. That ring has a certain value to it. Why did you give it up so easily?" Raine added, shaking the empty box at him. Lloyd reached out and took the box, peering into it himself and then frowning slightly.

"It was bigger, but that woman said it fit her perfectly. How did metal shrink that much without anyone noticing?" he muttered under his breath.

"There's nothing really to it; just a silly Family tradition that I had to follow when I became Wonder Chef." Adam replied with a nervous smile. Genis sighed, lifting his hands in exasperation. Like that answer was going to satisfy Raine...

"Let's just find an inn. I'm too pissed off to deal with this." Lloyd suddenly griped, shoving the box into his own pocket and stomping away. Kratos watched him go with a mildly puzzled look on his face, head tilting and eyebrow lifted. "You guys coming or not?" Adam finally got his hands free, offered a handkerchief to Colette with a gentle smile, and walked briskly to dodge another barrage of questions from Raine, hurrying along to follow after Lloyd.

As Genis fell into place by his sister, the group moving to find an inn for the night, he couldn't help but sense the pent up tension around her. He tugged at her hand. "Sis, what's wrong?" he asked quietly. Raine's eyes were glaring at the blonde boy ahead of them, but she closed them to take a deep breath and calm herself.

"I've seen a ring like the one Adam had once before. It was an artifact found in the Balacruf ruins years ago." she explained quietly, "It took several months before researchers could identify what it was despite the old wives' tale concerning the engraved symbol on the metal." Genis's eyes widened at her next words, mouth dropping open in shock. "That was an engagement ring. It's meant for the woman the Wonder Chef chooses for a bride. That's why I can't understand why Adam would simply throw it away like that." Raine murmured softly, worriedly, and when her eyes opened again it was to gaze at the chef with a sad and concerned expression. Genis couldn't help but do the same, gray eyes misting over slightly as he hung close to his older sister.


	12. To Hakonesia Peak

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

Kratos found checking into the Skipper's Haven inn far easier than the Seagull back in Izoold. The rooms were relatively cheap by comparison to other inns in the same sector of the city, and he could select the rooms he wanted based on how many beds were in them. This was ideal to prevent the misunderstanding in Izoold from happening again.

It was just _coincidence_ that the room he chose for himself, Raine and Colette -purely for guarding the Chosen, of course- ended up being taken by himself, Lloyd and Adam. He wondered whom exactly it was he was truly guarding, then sighed. What was the point of denying it? His son was alive and had grown into a young man, albeit a very unlearned one, but if he could just get the boy to open his eyes and take fighting seriously...

He twitched slightly at the dismayed groan coming from Lloyd as the brunet slumped in front of a stack of books placed before him by Raine. The teacher had given similar stacks to Genis and Colette, with yet another stack set aside for Adam, once the Wonder Chef returned from his bath. Really, did Lloyd **have** to sound like he was about to undergo torture at the mere sight of the textbooks? Was this something that happened because he was raised by a dwarf?

"Genis, let's start with imaginary numbers; you had some trouble with those, if I remember correctly." Raine told her brother, already preparing herself in the teacher's role. She turned to Colette and continued, "Brush up on local history and current advancements in technology. We may take a field trip to see the steamship Isabelle before we leave Palmacosta." Kratos lifted an eyebrow in interest as she turned her attention on Lloyd. What would the boy be studying? "Lloyd, work on your multiplication table; you can't possibly be expected to solve everything using 'times two' as your guide!"

The Seraph found himself wanting to groan in dismay, too. Instead, he squeezed his eyes shut, counted to ten, then opened them in time to see Adam enter the room, blink at the group and what they were doing, then immediately try to step backwards quickly through the door. Raine pinned him with her gaze, frowning deeply as she pointed at the lonely stack of books.

"Get back here and study, Adam! I need the rest of your placement homework to grade as well." she ordered and the young chef reluctantly took his place, pulling out the stack of papers from his travel bag by the bed he'd chosen for himself. Handing it over, he then sat by his books and looked at them with some amount of dread in his expression. "For now, I want you to study environmental science."

Kratos shook his head and decided to leave them to their studying. He was more interested in taking a short patrol around the inn. It would give him time and silence to think. Without a sound, he ghosted down the stairs and out the front door of the Skipper's Haven, turning to begin his habitual prowl, his mind dividing its attention between his surroundings and his thoughts.

What was he to do now? He'd already gotten Adam to pledge his silence on the truth of the two worlds and Cruxis, but the further they went on this journey, the closer they came to colliding with the organization. If things continued like this, Kratos would inevitably be forced to slay the party to ensure Cruxis's secrets stayed that way and then escort the Chosen to Mithos for another attempt at reviving Martel. His hand tightened on the hilt of his sword at the thought; no, he wouldn't be able to do it. That was a fact he was fully aware of and had known since he realized the boy he'd saved from the Renegades at the Martel Temple was his long-lost son.

He'd already killed one person he loved dearly; he couldn't bring himself to think of the chance he may have to do so again.

Encouraging Lloyd to open his mind and eyes to reality without giving himself away was his best and only option if they were ever to escape this cycle. Kratos considered the steps needed to do that. He would need to negate Mithos's strengths somehow, and increase Lloyd's own strength. This would require training, time, allies, resources, and of all these things Kratos could only provide training. Even **that** would be limited by how long it would take to travel to the four Seals. Distractions would lengthen the time, but he couldn't create them. Not without attracting attention and jeopardizing Lloyd.

Kratos paused his stride for a moment, standing directly below the windows of the second floor rooms. Sound filtered out, faintly, and he focused his angel senses to better hear what was going on.

"...I told you he looked tired, Raine. I mean, unlike _Lloyd_, he's got a good reason to fall asleep." Genis pointed out to his sister in that sarcastic tone that often earned him slaps upside the head.

"Shut it, Genis!" Lloyd barked back and was immediately shushed with a slap of his own.

"It can't be helped. There's still a little daylight left. Use this time to finish studying before bed. Genis, Colette, let's go to our room and continue our work there." Raine's voice was calm and sure, which clashed with the mental image Kratos had in his mind of her smacking him the way she did. There were footsteps, soft and paced to be unintrusive, and then the sound of the door being shut.

It was safe to return then, and Kratos allowed himself a small sigh of relief at having escaped 'study time' successfully before turning to go back inside.

.

In the morning, the group all stood outside the Skipper's Haven, looking down at the crumpled note that Lloyd held tightly in his hand, the brunet glaring at it like it had somehow offended him and he was contemplating how best to divest it of its existence. Kratos couldn't tell whether he should be amused or alarmed at how very much like himself the boy looked at that moment.

"Does he seriously think **this** counts as a note?" Lloyd finally growled, "'Find me'? _Really?_ That's all he wrote?" Genis finally managed to pry the pathetic-looking piece of paper from his hand and spread it open to read himself.

"Yep. 'Find me', and he signed with his initials." the smaller boy agreed, then looked up at the brunet, "I don't see why you're getting all worked up over it. You **told** him to leave a note the next time he went to hide, right?" Lloyd just scowled further.

"Yeah, but he could have at least let us know _where_ he was going!" he argued. Genis lifted his hands in a shrug, shaking his head in exasperation.

"That would have defeated the purpose of him hiding, Lloyd." he returned dryly, "Anyway, we have to go back to the Academy to get the exam challenge finished. If we can get through it quickly, we can go to the Church of Martel after that and see if the pastor knows where the next Seal is." At the brunet's flat glare, Genis added on quickly, "And we can look for Adam while we're at both places, okay?"

Lloyd looked mollified by that, and Kratos resisted the urge to plant his face into the palm of his hand as the boy turned abruptly on one foot and cheerfully whistled, leading the group on to the school building. Instead, he focused on the back of Lloyd's head, just taking in the sight of his son _moving_, _living_. There was so much of his mother there, especially when he suddenly switched tracks with his emotions like that. He just **had** to find some way to protect him, to possibly change things that would allow him to continue to live, free of uncertainty that Desians may one day fall upon him and end him.

Although, considering the dogged manner in which Lloyd seemed intent on fighting Desians, that may be a more arduous task than first intended. Then there was the added matter of the Wonder Chef, the boy who was severely underpowered despite his title and had somehow become a point of fixation for Lloyd simply because he couldn't stand to be in physical contact with people. The people of the two worlds managed to last _this_ long despite periods of drought and famine because the Wonder Chef had always been there to enhance and rejuvenate what little food was found, maintaining the population just long enough for world regeneration and then vanishing to the other world to repeat the process. He was deliberately ignoring that duty for the sole purpose of attempting to convince the Chosen to seek another method of saving the world.

Kratos found himself wondering how he was going to deal with the two of them and still keep guard over Colette without losing his sanity in the process.

* * *

Keen observation was key to finding Adam. Raine was beginning to learn this as she watched Lloyd and Colette dash about on the way to the Palmacosta Academy, one looking determined and the other smiling happily. They searched everything they came across that they didn't recognize or thought was 'weird'. Buckets of flowers, cracked pots clustered into a pile, empty trash cans, all these and more were poked at and prodded in the search for the Wonder Chef. She sighed, shaking her head at her students. It seemed almost self-destructive for the blonde to keep running off like that just to teach them a recipe, especially since this time he might not have gotten enough rest.

It had been rather obvious the previous evening just how... _delicate_ Adam appeared to be. While in the midst of grading his placement work, she had lifted her head to demand why he had penciled in corrections to **her** questions and spotted the blonde already asleep, open book still in his lap as he rested back against the foot of the bed. Lloyd had been watching the other teen, eraser end of his pencil stuck between his teeth, and with a strange expression. Some mix of concern, amusement, and confusion that seemed like something Lloyd was apt to have on when faced with a puzzle too far out of his league. She decided to end the study session early at that point; his work in the cafeteria had sapped Adam's energy despite his cooking prowess and if he was going to pull that disappearing act on them again, he would need ample rest.

The last she saw of him was as she was escorting her brother and Colette out of the room, and it was to see Lloyd rub at the back of his neck in exasperation before bending to pick the other boy up and set him properly on the bed. Raine had chuckled at the sight, then left.

"He disguises as something that tries to blend in with what's around him, but since he's still really young he doesn't have the power to do it perfectly." Genis muttered as he walked beside her. Raine glanced down at him, eyebrow raising.

"Oh? And how did you discover this?" she asked him. Genis pointed at Lloyd, who was now lightly kicking the bench just outside the Academy with a pout on his face. Colette stood by him, giggling behind her hands.

"Lloyd said so, and he said he learned it from Kratos." he returned and Raine frowned thoughtfully. Kratos knew a lot more than he let on about Adam, about many things really. Perhaps it was because he was a mercenary, and travel allowed him the ability to learn from experience, but there was no true way of _experiencing_ the hidden knowledge of the Wonder Chef. Especially since -until just recently- Raine herself had admitted to believing that such a person was a fractured story, more myth than legend, and she had studied and read every book she could get her hands on about ancient ruins and relics.

Granted she'd been _surprised_ that the Wonder Chef would even be mentioned in the same lines as ancient ruins, which brought up even **more** questions...

They entered the school's main foyer and Lloyd seemed to stiffen in place, then run forward to a sizable space under the staircases. Raine automatically called out for him to stop running just in time for him to halt on his own, glaring at the collection of athletic equipment that was stored in that empty space.

"Lloyd, how many times have I told you not to run inside buildings?" she scolded as she walked up to join him.

"Professor, was this thing here yesterday?" the brunet asked in return, peering at a long, thin pole topped with a basket that held various balls, much like the other baskets set properly on the floor around it. Soccer balls, basketballs, dodge balls, there was a great many of them in supply and Raine looked around at the other baskets before giving the pole structure an intrigued expression. It was rather a unique thing, and she was certain that such an oddity would have registered with them the first time they came here. She blinked as she recalled something else in relation to this spot.

"Oh. Lloyd, while you were busy talking your way into trouble again, I noticed that Adam had been looking at this particular spot with a great deal of scrutiny." she remarked, thinking back to the few minutes it took him to get Genis embroiled in the exam challenge. The blonde had seemed to forget they existed and had narrowed his gaze on this very spot.

"It's a high possibility that he's hiding right there, then." Genis piped up from behind them, hands on his hips as he smirked mischievously, "If not a guarantee, based on what Raine said."

Emboldened by her assumption, Raine reached out and brushed her hand against the cool metal of the basket stand, leaping back with her hand over her heart in surprise when it erupted into white smoke. When it dissipated, Adam stood in that same place, smiling cheerfully as he hopped from foot to foot in that strange little dance of his, giant fork in hand.

"I am the mysterious gourmet, the Wonder Chef!" he declared and Lloyd rolled his eyes, muttering 'We already _know_ that, Adam' under his breath, "Spell your love with ketchup! I will now impart to you the recipe for that traditional breakfast food, omelet!"

Raine smiled in fond exasperation as she watched the blonde pull out his recipe book and flip through the pages in search of that very recipe, a small pout on his face as he scanned the words. He took his role as Wonder Chef very seriously; too bad the same couldn't be said about his studies. Though the majority of his placement work told her he was quite intelligent and well-educated, there were still questions he left purposely blank or rewrote. Why he would do such a thing was beyond her understanding. For now.

_'I'll solve that mystery in due time. It shouldn't be so hard to do with careful observation.'_ she decided with a smile as she accepted the slip of paper with the egg and rice-based recipe. "Thank you, Adam. I'm sure I'll be able to make a marvelous omelet with this recipe and some innovative ingredients!"

"Now, you've done it." Genis sighed with a shake of his head as Adam's smile dropped away and he took on a horrified expression.

* * *

Lloyd felt immensely better about things once Adam was back in the group and Genis swiped the omelet recipe from his sister. As they headed up the stairs to the classroom where the exam challenge would be taking place, his good mood started to wear off little by little, until he was frowning to himself as Raine talked with the dean of the Palmacosta Academy who would be supervising the exams. It was good that the chef was with them again, but it just reminded him of what happened the other day, Adam and Colette working in the cafeteria to buy the Potion and Adam giving up that ring. It just felt all wrong to him. It wasn't fair; those other people made all that fuss about some stupid Potion and because of that...

He snapped back to attention just in time to hear Raine suggest that **everyone** take the exam too. "Eh? Why do **we** have to take it?" Lloyd blurted out in dismay, "I thought this was just a thing between Genis and that other kid!" Said other kid leaned over his desk and glared at him; Lloyd ignored him, even as Genis dropped his face into his palm.

"Well, just try it out." Raine told him cheerfully, "This would be a good way of seeing how far you've come in your studies."

"I thought that was what the placement homework was for. How much more of this do I have to go through?" Adam muttered as Lloyd nodded in agreement. In the end, the group took their own seats in the room for the test, and the brunet grimaced slightly at the thick stack of papers set before him. He twisted in his seat and looked up at Kratos, the mercenary raising an eyebrow at the exam stack laid down for him.

"Psst! Kratos!" Lloyd whispered out, one hand curled around his mouth to carry his voice, "What's the answer to the first question?" Kratos shot him a glare and Lloyd just grinned widely at him, snickering before turning back around and looking to either side of him.

He sat between Colette and Adam, and he found it strangely cheering to have a blonde on each side of him. Weird. Raine sat next to Genis, who sat next to that Mighty Washington kid, and the dean looked around at them to be sure everyone had a test and a pencil.

"All right. And, begin!" he declared, and Lloyd groaned softly, smile falling away as he picked up his pencil and stared blankly at his test. Colette hummed softly to herself as she went straight to answering the questions. The brunet looked at her with a raised eyebrow, then turned to see how Adam was doing, the chef chewing on his pencil as he read over the questions. With a sigh, Lloyd went back to staring at his own sheets.

Tests sucked.

After what felt like forever, the dean called an end to the testing and went around collecting the stacks to be graded. Lloyd sat back in his seat, grimacing but relieved that it was finally over. "Man, if I ever lay eyes on another test, it'll be too soon!" he complained and blinked up at the two blondes looking down at him, "How did you two manage to get through it without getting a headache?"

"It wasn't that bad, Lloyd. I'm sure you did great on it!" Colette remarked brightly, smiling at him in optimism. Lloyd couldn't help but smile back. Adam grinned as well, resting his cheek on one hand as he gazed at the brunet.

"I'm curious to hear what your score will be. Genis said that schoolwork isn't really your strong suit." he remarked and laughed when Lloyd just stuck his tongue out at him.

That reminded him of something else. Lloyd absently rubbed around his Exsphere mount lightly. When he got into that argument with Mighty and got that exam challenge issued, his hand had itched again as he considered his options. Turn it down so they could get to the cafeteria sooner, or take it and show his faith in Genis? He chose to believe in Genis and his smarts, and when the smaller boy gave a huff of fond exasperation and Adam beamed at Genis as he talked about Lloyd's faith, the itch faded. It was weird, but Lloyd kept it to himself.

"The results are in! I will now announce the scores." the dean declared at last and Lloyd sat up, eager to know by how much Genis had won. "First, Lloyd Irving scored 25."

"Wow! 25!" Lloyd exclaimed in shock, turning to Colette in amazement as the Chosen cheered for him, clapping her hands excitedly.

"That's amazing, Lloyd! It's your best score yet!" she congratulated him and Lloyd preened, soaking up the praise and oblivious to Kratos covering his face with his hands, Adam staring at him in dumbfounded silence, and Raine, Genis and Mighty all giving him pitying expressions. A score of 25; how awesome was that? He usually got a 10. Wonder what changed to have him score so high this time?

The dean went on after a moment. "Colette Brunel scored 210." he announced and Lloyd turned his gaze on the man, confused by the strangely high number.

"Huh?" he asked, "Hey, it's not out of 100?" Professor Sage always scored out of 100 on **her** tests. Genis gave him a flat glare from across the room.

"It's out of 400." he replied, and Lloyd's face burned red, the brunet sinking down in his chair to try disappearing himself. So... embarrassing. Behind him, Kratos made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a groan.

"Adam Voraci scored 320." the dean continued. Lloyd gave the other blonde a surprised look and Adam blushed, shrugging helplessly. He laughed and the chef blinked before returning Lloyd's earlier expression, teasingly sticking his tongue out just a bit. This just made Colette giggle along. "Kratos Aurion scored 380."

"I figured he'd know a lot of useless stuff." Lloyd complained, craning his head back on his neck to glare up at the mercenary with lidded eyes, "Hey, Kratos! How the heck do you know so much?" Kratos glared back at him from his desk in the higher row, and to Lloyd it looked like he was huddled there. It almost made him want to laugh again.

"I would imagine it is because **I** paid attention to **my** studies." he retorted.

"Raine Sage scored 400!" the dean declared in an impressed tone and Lloyd straightened up with a wide smile. Nothing but perfection from the Professor, of course. She knew _everything_. "And now the results of Genis Sage and Mighty Washington." the elder man finally came to the point of the exam challenge. He checked the scores on his own and nodded. "Genis Sage scored... 400! Mighty Washington scored 398!" the dean declared, "Genis Sage is the winner!"

"That's impossible!" Mighty declared in shock and turned to Genis, "Amazing! It looks like I was wrong about you after all." Lloyd grinned as he watched the two of them talk before turning his head in time to catch Adam yawn widely, hand lifted to his mouth to cover the action.

"Are you _still_ tired, Adam?" he asked in concern, "I thought you got plenty of sleep." The chef rubbed his head, giving him a weak little grin. But before Lloyd could hear what he was going to say, something else caught his attention; the dean's offer for Genis to stay at the Academy to study. "Huh?" Lloyd exclaimed, feeling his insides twist almost painfully at the thought that Genis would be staying behind, the same as when Adam asked to study under Cacao's mother. Separating from a friend... the idea of it hurt. But it wouldn't be fair for Genis to miss out, since he'd already missed his first chance at coming here, so he forced a smile at the surprised little boy and hoped it looked encouraging.

"That's great, Genis! Um, you can stay here and study and go to school if you really want to, you know." the dual swordsman offered and to his own ears it sounded pretty lame, but dammit, he just wanted his friends to be happy! "This is what you wanted, right?" But to his surprise -and secretly, to his pleasure- Genis just shook his head and smiled back at him before looking up at the dean of the school.

"Thank you very much, but I want to finish the world regeneration journey first." he replied politely and smiled at Lloyd again, eyes bright and shiny with joy, "I told you, Lloyd, I'm sticking by you until the very end! You can't get rid of me **that** easy!" Lloyd just returned his smile with a grateful one.

"Then let me give you an acceptance certificate. Just bring it with you to this school after your journey is complete and you'll be immediately enrolled." the dean suggested, handing Genis a rolled up parchment instead. Mighty nodded eagerly, smiling at the smaller boy.

"Yes! Please come back when your journey ends!" he exclaimed with new respect in his tone, "You could be the greatest genius to come out of this school in time!" Genis just laughed sheepishly, clutching the parchment and rubbing his head.

"I will, I promise! Thanks so much, everyone!" he cheered. Lloyd pumped both fists into the air, grinning hugely. His best friend won the challenge, proved he was the smartest kid, got the letter to be able to come back here later, _and_ they found Adam much faster than they did in Izoold.

This journey was definitely getting to be pretty cool.

* * *

The building next to the Palmacosta Academy was the Church of Martel, large and ostentatious compared to the Martel Temple that Lloyd, Colette, Genis and Raine were used to in Iselia. Inside was equally as nice. Genis looked around, eyes wide and taking in everything he could. Columns leaned forward and then bent back to support the expansive roof, rich red fabric draped over the brick walls for decoration and rows of finely woven mats were taken up by people that knelt in prayer, facing the pastor and a small statue of a young woman with flowing hair, loose robes and a shimmering halo around her head.

Colette hummed cheerfully as Raine led them all to meet with the pastor, the old man lifting his head from his reading of a prayer book to greet them. It took him a moment to register the Chosen of Mana standing before him, and then he straightened in sudden surprise, a wide and warm smile spreading across his friendly, aged face.

"Oh! Chosen One, do you remember me?" he asked, sounding much like a grandfather eagerly reuniting with a beloved grandchild, "I'm Marche. I trained as a priest at the Martel Temple." Colette beamed happily, smiling up at the elderly man.

"Of course I remember you; you always brought me such pretty flowers on my birthday." she returned and nodded in greeting, "It's so nice to see you again. So you've become a pastor now. That's wonderful!"

"Yes. Ever since the Tower of Salvation appeared, I have eagerly awaited the arrival of the Chosen." Pastor Marche positively trembled with excitement. It kind of creeped Genis out. "The legend of Spiritua will surely be of use to you."

Colette blinked in surprise and Genis wondered why she would be; Spiritua was a famous Chosen. Everyone knew of her in some way, even Adam. "Spiritua gave her first sermon here, right?" the blonde girl asked, looking around herself before tilting her head when her gaze settled on the pastor again, "That was copied down?" The old man nodded.

"Yes, that is correct. The legend of the world regeneration from that time was written down in the Book of Regeneration and was given to the royal family." he explained and looked momentarily sheepish, "At least, back when we **had** a royal family."

"What part of the Book of Regeneration can help us?" Genis asked, both curious and eager to get things back on track for the journey. The pastor turned to him with a knowing smile, one finger lifted in the air.

"The Book contains a record of every seal the Chosen must break, and their locations as well." he replied and Genis cheered, pumping a fist into the air.

"That's it! We won't have any trouble finding the seals if we have that!" he exclaimed, "Thanks for telling us, Pastor!" He settled down with a grin once Raine set her hand on his shoulder and asked where the Book could be found. Their luck was really going good now! He'd had some misgivings after that little fiasco with the four weirdos and the Palma Potion, but now things were looking up.

"Thank you! We'll go see Governor-General Dorr right away!" Colette remarked brightly, giving the pastor a respectful bow before the group bid their goodbyes and began leaving the church. Genis spotted Adam talking with Chocolat at a small stand near the entrance, the young woman smiling brightly at him as she shuffled papers into neat stacks. Lloyd called out to him and the blonde nodded before turning back to say something to Chocolat, give her a small slip of paper, laugh at her coyish response, then wave farewell as he rejoined the group. Genis saw some prime teasing material right there. Goddess, he was almost as bad as Lloyd in giving him lots to work with for making fun!

"Was that Chocolat?" Lloyd asked once Adam followed them out of the church. He nodded. "What were you guys talking about?"

"We just did a little catching up since we haven't seen one another since we were children. She operates a touring business for people on pilgrimage now." the Wonder Chef returned as he walked beside the brunet, "I was curious about it and she explained how people journey for spiritual growth and it gave her the idea of going into a touring business. She signs up people to go on a journey together in one large group and leads them as their guide. This allows them to qualify for escort, so they can move safely past any dangers." Lloyd stared at him blankly and Adam floundered a bit. "Um... I... don't know how to say that any other way." he added weakly, almost wincing with the effort of trying to think of a simpler way to repeat what he'd just said.

"Don't worry. In a few weeks, you'll be able to translate into Lloydese." Genis told him with an air of confidence, patting him on the arm as if he were the child. Adam sighed almost despairingly, muttering 'I'm rather afraid of acquiring that skill, actually.' under his breath. The half-elf smiled cattily, elbowing him lightly as they walked. "But you were looking _pret-ty_ cozy with Chocolat back there." he added teasingly, "Getting sweet on the granddaughter of your dad's teacher?"

Oh, the red that just blazed over Adam's startled face was _priceless_! Genis couldn't help but laugh as the young chef sputtered and waved his hands helplessly, shaking his head in denial. He quickly stifled it when Raine shot him a stern look but kept the smile in place. "Okay, okay." Genis remarked, grinning, "Still, you can't deny that you looked really comfortable around her."

"**Chocolat** didn't try poking me in the _neck_." Adam muttered, hands stuffed into his pockets as he pouted, cheeks still flushed pink as he gave the back of Lloyd's head a halfhearted glare, the brunet back to leading the group around again. Genis found that kind of weird; if this was Colette's journey and **she** was the one who pretty much decided where they went and what they did, then why the heck was Lloyd walking at the front? "I was returning her grandmother's recipes." the Wonder Chef went on, drawing Genis's attention back to him. Adam looked a little wistful, gazing ahead of them with a faraway look in his eyes. "Since she's not here to train me in making sweets, I have no reason to keep carrying the recipes. Returning them felt right."

Then the moment passed and Adam chuckled. "Then she asked if I was looking for a discount on the next pilgrimage by giving them to her." he finished with a wry grin, "Shrewd business practice. She'll do just fine." Genis nodded in agreement, wondering if Chocolat would have gotten the little green and gold ring if it hadn't been given away. He tried to picture it in his head; Adam and Chocolat in a little house together.

"Erk!" Genis squeaked, shaking his head quickly to dispel the image. It didn't feel right. She was loud and hotheaded and seemed the type to hold grudges, if the way she acted back in the shop was anything to go by. Adam was pretty much the opposite; he'd probably let her get away with everything just to maintain calm and end up not very happy. The blonde looked down at him with a puzzled look on his face, head tilted in silent question, and Genis laughed nervously, rubbing his nose. "Eh, nothing! Don't mind me! Ha ha ha!" he remarked in a too-bright tone. Well, **that** didn't sound suspicious at all...

* * *

By the time they reached the steps leading up to the government building that was the heart of Palmacosta, the unsettling feeling Adam had about the city when they first arrived had returned nearly full-force, and it took all he had to quell shudders before they became noticeable by the rest of the group. He bounced on his feet as he took the steps one after another, an excuse to burn the excess nervous energy he'd gained after leaving the academy. Most of the group was already entering the building, but Lloyd and Kratos stayed outside. Adam gave them both a puzzled look, watching as the brunet listened to something one of the guards told him, murmured something himself and then react with surprise when Kratos spoke to him.

Not wanting to be thought of as an eavesdropper, Adam decided to follow the rest of the party into the building, only to be pulled back by the wrist. Startled, he spun in place, free hand lifting to push away whoever it was that had grabbed him. It was Lloyd -figures-, who immediately let go and jumped back, hands up in the air and surprise on his face.

"Whoa! Okay, sorry! Didn't think you'd still be jumpy." he exclaimed, blinking rapidly. Adam stared at him in disbelief, then sighed, exasperation setting in as he rubbed at one temple carefully.

"Lloyd, I rather wish you didn't insist on touching me so often. Or at least doing so without some warning." he returned and looked up at him warily, "What is it? Why are you smiling like that at me?" Because the brunet was just about _beaming_ at him and Adam was seriously considering just teleporting back to the Skipper's Haven until they were all ready to leave.

"Kratos said he'd train me once we leave the city." Lloyd told him with a wide grin, leaning forward and eyes bright. Adam leaned backwards, trying to maintain space without looking rude about it.

"That's... nice of him... actually." he replied slowly, uncertainly. His face was burning; oh, he can **not** be blushing right now! Why, why, **why** did he always blush this much when Lloyd got near him? It had to be the awkwardness of proximity, yes. That made perfect sense.

"I asked if he'd train you too, and he said yeah!" Lloyd added, throwing his hands up cheerfully, "Isn't that great, Adam?"

"Yes, wonderful, now can you lean ba-, wait... _what?_" Adam cried in shock, falling backwards now that he'd lost his balance and earning a couple of glares from the guards for crashing onto the Governor-General's doorstep. _"Lloyd!"_

The brunet was already pulling him up, oblivious to his stammering as he went on excitedly. "See, I was just wondering to myself if I should do some extra training to help protect Colette better, and then Kratos said he'd train me if I wanted, so I said yeah," Lloyd rambled on and started pushing Adam through the door with Kratos following behind them, stoic as ever, "and **then** I remembered that you could use some more work in fighting styles so I asked if you could join in and Kratos said it was a good idea!"

"And you didn't think to ask **me** first if I even wanted to train with you?" Adam cried in frustration, squirming at the feel of the brunet's hands gripping his shoulders and steering him to the main office, where Raine was impatiently waiting for them. The forward march halted then and Adam blinked in surprise before feeling himself get pulled back, and then went rigid at the sight of Lloyd dropping his chin on his shoulder to look up at him with wide, puppy-dog eyes.

"Please?" the brunet pouted, "Dwarven Vow Number 80; Stuff's more fun to do when there's two." Adam just glared at him, halfhearted and nowhere near as intense as he wished it could be.

"How do those even _apply_ to me?" he demanded and shuddered, finally throwing up his hands to push Lloyd off, "All right, all right! I'll join, just stop touching me so much!" And typical Lloyd, the other boy cheered and threw his arms around him in a hug. "Geh! _Lloyd!_ I just said not to-!" He managed to get free of the brunet and stumbled forward, tripping over himself in his haste to get away.

Things went wrong for him almost instantly after that. Adam threw out his hands to catch himself, Lloyd dove for him to save him first, and ended up colliding with enough force to land them both on the floor, with Kratos standing there and scowling at them both like he'd just seen a dog soil the ground in front of him. That alone would have been enough to make the young chef want to crawl into a dark corner and stay there for the rest of his life, if not for the fact that as soon as his hands touched the floor, that feeling of wrongness that he'd been doing his best to ignore ever since they passed through Palmacosta's plaza, ever since they drew close to this very building, hit him with the same impact as when that assassin's Guardian hurled him into the face of the mountain.

He screamed, flailing about almost blindly in an effort to shove Lloyd off of him and -_get away get away get away_- get out of the building. Kratos looked faintly alarmed, reaching down to haul Lloyd aside by the arm and giving him the chance he needed to bolt. Fleetingly, he heard the dual swordsman cry his name, but at the moment Adam didn't care to respond to it, just out, out, out, he needed out right then and there.

The guards gave him strange looks and asked repeatedly if he was all right, sitting on the steps to the building and clutching one of the supporting pillars as he alternated between gasping for air and dry-heaving. Adam didn't know whether to nod just to get them to back off or admit he wasn't at all 'all right' and have one of them run inside to fetch Raine or -heaven forbid- _Lloyd_.

What the hell was **in** there? What **was** it that was saturating the air and the stone and the city with that inherent wrongness, that sick feeling of decay and pain and misery? Didn't anyone else notice? Why couldn't they **feel** that?

Adam pressed his forehead against the marble pillar, flinching once in annoyance at the circlet he'd been forced to wear clicking against the stone, and then just sank into relief at the coolness of the marble resting against what little skin could touch. The pillar was safe, awash in care and pride and security. Actually, now that he could get his racing thoughts back in order and under control, he'd half-expected Lloyd to have raced out of the building after him by now. Had Kratos held him back for some reason?

He felt unclean again, which meant another bath was in order. Did anyone else in the party think it odd of him to want so many baths so often? It was just part of who he was and where he came from, and since no one was supposed to know that much about the Wonder Chef he supposed it was a given. With a sigh, Adam managed to get to his feet and walk up to one of the guards.

"When the group that entered returns, would you mind telling them I've gone back to the Skipper's Haven?" he asked of the guards. Once assured that they would deliver the message, Adam left the building entirely and walked back to the inn, hands in his pockets as he thought over his experience in the short hallway leading to the Governor-General's office. There was something terrible hidden there, and it seemed like everyone was oblivious to it.

No, not 'seemed like'; they **were** oblivious. They didn't have the same senses he did, so he couldn't expect them to pick up on it as well. Wouldn't Kratos have, though? He was one of the Four Seraphim, surely his angel senses would have alerted him to something wrong. But no, Kratos was just as surprised by his reaction as Lloyd.

_'I suppose empathy isn't considered an angel sense?'_ Adam thought to himself darkly, _'I doubt it, considering how little they care for the lives they destroy.'_

.

Baths in Sylvarant were much simpler and longer to take than the methods he was normally used to taking back home. Adam finished dressing in the room he'd shared with Lloyd and Kratos, and just barely brushed his hair down over his left eye when the door slammed open, startling him into spinning around. _'Speak of the devil. Or think it, in my case.'_ he thought to himself, and then found himself shrinking back at the realization that Lloyd had a rather thunderous expression on his face as he scanned the room quickly, _'What happened?'_

When he was finally spotted -and just how infuriated could Lloyd be if he didn't see all the green and red standing out against the plain wood furniture and subdued decor?-, Adam winced, holding up his hands as the brunet stormed over to him and grabbed his wrist, all but dragging him out of the room. "Come on! We have to leave **now**!" Lloyd griped angrily.

"Why? What's going on? Ow... Lloyd, not so tight!" Adam protested in confusion, hurrying down the stairs after him as Kratos finished returning the keys to the innkeeper. There was a tension in the air, making his surroundings feel charged and Lloyd's deathgrip on his arm wasn't helping matters any. "Lloyd, let go! Ow!" He tried to pull himself free, resorting to grabbing the brunet by his free hand and shaking his arm to get his attention. "Lloyd! _You're hurting me!_"

That seemed to have gotten the message through. Lloyd dropped his wrist as if scalded and turned to stare at him with wide eyes, alarm and apology flitting through them in order. "I'm sorry! It's just..." he babbled and gestured helplessly before drawing both hands up over his face, muffling a short scream of frustration. Adam watched him in concern, glancing over at the Seraph who just tilted his head towards the door in a sign for them to meet outside soon. "Look, we have to leave right away. That Book thing that we were going to get from the Governor-General got swiped by a bunch of imposters pretending to be Colette and us, and we figured out its the same bunch that bullied you and Colette into giving them stuff for that stupid Palma Potion!" Lloyd finally explained in a rush, all passionate fury in his face and tone. Adam stared at him blankly.

"You mean someone **else** figured it out and you're more incensed that they also conned us than in the fact that a valuable artifact is about to be sold." he finally returned with a lidded expression, rubbing his wrist gingerly as Lloyd mirrored his earlier expression. He sighed. "Never mind. I get what you mean, however, and you're right. It's not good." he finally relented, "Colette has a right to that book since it is a record of her ancestor's travels, so we should hurry to retrieve it. Where did they say the group was going?"

"To Hakonesia Peak. It's pretty far north of here, so we gotta go right now!" Lloyd told him and grabbed him by the arm again, racing out of the inn and deaf to his renewed protests.

"Lloyd! Will you stop grabbing me like that? _Lloyd!_"

* * *

They had put several hours of hard travel behind them, and Palmacosta was pretty much a white blur in the distance by the time Raine called for a stop to let Colette and Genis rest. Lloyd couldn't _rest_, still too angry and energized by that anger to want to stay still. He wanted to keep moving, chase down those imposters -and leave it to Colette to think it was great to have more than one Chosen 'helping regenerate the world'- and then do something to them to make them never want to trick people ever again. He wasn't sure what yet, he was too mad to really think on it.

Most of all, Lloyd was just pissed off that they'd tricked Colette and Adam into giving them another Potion and Adam's ring just because of a little accident. Actually, he was more irritated with the Potion half than he was actually angry. The money used to buy it could have been useful later, and they could always earn more from just killing a few monsters and filling out bounties. No, what really had him wanting to beat up a tree for lack of a better target was the memory of the fake Chosen taking Adam's ring and laughing while admiring it on her finger.

"Damn it!" he cursed under his breath, punching the tree instead and then leaning against it, forehead pressed against his arm. It didn't make him feel any better, and now he had a sore hand. You can't replace a ring as easily as money, especially ones that were crafted special. Lloyd had his suspicions about the little gold ring, but without it around for him to check out, he couldn't be sure of it.

He was also still worried about what had happened in Palmacosta, when Adam screamed after falling to the floor and then fled the building without a single explanation why. Lloyd had wanted to go after him, but Kratos had pulled him back, told him to let the Wonder Chef recollect himself, and they had to see Dorr about the Book anyway. From there that fiasco with being called impersonators happened, and Colette's 'falling on her butt' miracle that had her wings pop out to save her saved them all from being hauled away by the guards that Dorr called up. More headaches they didn't need on this trip, ugh.

"Lloyd." Kratos's voice drew him out of his thoughts, and he pulled away from the tree to watch the mercenary walk over to him, all cool and calm as always. It was something that Lloyd found himself a little jealous of sometimes; if he was more like Kratos, then maybe he wouldn't be freaking Adam out so much. Of course, if he was more like Kratos, he wouldn't care that he was freaking the guy out in the first place.

"Oh. Hey, Kratos." Lloyd greeted in return, not really feeling up to butting heads with the man again. He'd already felt like an idiot earlier, when Kratos gave him that glare over not realizing sooner that the four people they'd run into were the same as the imposters who stole the Regeneration Book thing. He didn't want a second dose. "What's up?"

"Since we've stopped for the duration, I came to see if you still had a desire to train." the mercenary remarked evenly, "There is a small clearing not very far from here, and the others will be safe around the fire." Lloyd looked around him, spotting his friends all gathered around a campfire and relaxing, watching Genis and Adam cutting up portions of meat for sandwiches.

"Yeah. I said I'd like for you to train me, and I'm not going back on that. Not when I want to get stronger and protect Colette and Adam." the brunet agreed, checking both of his swords to be sure they were in place and easy to unsheathe. Kratos raised an eyebrow at him, head tilting in that way that let him know that he'd actually confused the man. "What?"

"Ah, nothing." Kratos replied and glanced at the campsite, "Is the Wonder Chef not joining us then?" Lloyd lit up, remembering that he'd gotten Adam involved in that as well.

"Oh, yeah! Hey, Adam!" he called out, waving his hand excitedly as the blonde looked up from his work, "We're gonna go train for a while! Let's go!"

"You volunteered me without asking!" Adam shot back, Genis and Colette giggling and laughing behind their hands at them.

"Just go and do it. Lloyd's never gonna stop bugging you about it if you don't." the smaller boy pointed out with a grin, "Did he use a Dwarven Vow on you? 'Cause if he did, he's gonna hold it over you _forever_." Lloyd made a mental note to rub Genis's hair the wrong way later and waited for the chef to get up. He was rewarded when, a few minutes later, Adam came over with his frying pan in hand and a look of resignation of his face.

"All right. I'm here." he remarked flatly and held up the pan, pressing the lip of it against Lloyd's chest when he smiled widely, "No _touching_, Lloyd."

Sheesh, didn't know when to joke around, did he? But it didn't matter to Lloyd; they were going to get some sword-training in at last and he was excited. He followed Kratos to the clearing he'd found and looked around in appreciation. It was spacious and the ground was pretty flat and even, no rocks or anything that they could accidentally trip over. Eager to get started, Lloyd darted ahead of Kratos, spun around and unsheathed both swords, taking a stance.

"Hah! How's that?" he declared proudly. It was a cool stance and it showed off his swords, plus it was easy to start slashing once he had them both swung to the side like that. Kratos didn't look at all impressed and Adam just gave him a blank look, frying pan in his grip.

"You're wide open." the mercenary told him bluntly and Lloyd nearly fell over in shock.

"Wh-what? How?" he demanded to know, looking over his stance and trying hard to see what Kratos was seeing. How was he open? If anyone tried to come up at him, all he'd have to do was spin in place and both swords would hit all around him! It was cool! The mercenary came up and tapped both blades with his own sword.

"Fighting with two swords deviates from the way they were originally intended to be used." he explained, and Lloyd suddenly found the sound and tone of his voice strangely familiar, tugging on a memory grown dusty and nearly forgotten. His eyebrows furrowed slightly, listening closely and trying to bring that memory to light. "The difficulty increases your vulnerability, since swords had been designed to allow for the equipping of a shield for defense." Kratos lifted his own simple round shield as an example.

Unable to dredge the memory from the murky depths, Lloyd shook his head and frowned. "That's weird." he muttered aloud, "If you're strong using one sword, then using two will make you twice as strong, right?" Kratos narrowed his eyes at him and the brunet had the sudden urge to retreat to a corner and hide behind someone.

"...Are you telling me that's the reason you chose to fight with two swords?" the mercenary demanded quietly. Lloyd couldn't figure it out. It made perfect sense! Why didn't Kratos see that? He nodded, giving the man a puzzled look.

Lloyd wasn't sure what to make of that open-mouthed gaping expression on Adam's face, but he knew right away he didn't like that other one on Kratos's face. His own cheeks burned at the sight. "What?" he exclaimed at last, confused and annoyed and annoyed with being confused, "Why do you look at me with pity?"

"I'm going back to camp." Adam finally muttered, turning in place and already starting to walk away. He halted when Kratos reached out and snagged him by the collar.

"I said I would train you both to fight properly, and by the Goddess I **will**." the mercenary growled, stalking towards Lloyd with the blonde in tow.

"Eeps!" Lloyd squeaked and tried to run, only to get caught by the ribbons on his own collar moments later. And for the life of him, he just could not figure out why he broke into laughter at being caught like that.

.

Training with Kratos as their teacher was _hard_. There were stances he had to learn and he had to always 'think about where his opponents may attack' and balance that with making sure he didn't leave himself open again -and he had the bruises to show for his failing to do that a lot-, and Lloyd was feeling worn out. It was pretty much the same for Adam, who Kratos had an even harder time training because the guy used a frying pan and who in their right mind used **that** as a main weapon? It had no distance, so Adam was always in danger of getting hit by swords; it had no edge, so he couldn't cut or stab with it, just beat people over the head if he was really lucky; the most Kratos could do was drill the need for agility and speed into the guy so he could stay alive long enough to get close and whack someone.

Lloyd watched from where he rested under a tree as Kratos threw the blonde backwards several feet after another failed attempt to get close. He sighed, rubbing around the mount of his Exsphere again. It had itched again when Kratos first offered to train him and he had just rubbed absently at it when he excitedly agreed to take the offer. Now he wondered if it hadn't been another of those odd signs about decisions. What would have happened if he'd turned Kratos down?

"Move with purpose, not just blind speed! Without purpose, you cannot think ahead in your movements, and that is what you need to get close and strike!" Kratos declared sternly. Lloyd turned his gaze from the mercenary to the chef lying flat on his back and gasping for air. Well, they wouldn't be getting their butts kicked by a guy using one sword, that's for sure. He got to his feet, dusting himself off before grabbing his jacket from the grass and pulling it back on.

"It's getting kind of dark, Kratos. We should go back to the others now." he pointed out and walked over to help pull Adam to his feet. The mercenary gazed upward, nodded, and waited for the two teens to collect themselves before following him back. Lloyd walked beside Kratos, frowning thoughtfully to himself. As annoyed as he was with getting his body and ego battered from training, the experience really did show him just how pathetic he was to think slashing in a frenzy would get him through all his battles. Kratos hadn't held back in his offense -and Lloyd was glad that his strikes were done with the flat of the blade or they'd all be in a world of hurt- and nothing Lloyd did actually held the guy at bay. One lesson had him put into the role of defending Adam from getting attacked; he was on his butt in no time, staring at the mercenary holding his sword across the blonde's stomach and both frowning at him.

His way of fighting was so beginner, a kid could probably beat him.

"What is it, Lloyd?" Kratos asked suddenly, and Lloyd looked up to see the man giving him a concerned gaze. It surprised him for a moment before he returned to his earlier brooding, brows furrowed slightly.

"I think... there are more things I must learn in order to fight powerful enemies." the brunet replied carefully, doing his best to pull his thoughts together so he could talk about them, "The way I fought before, it must have been dumb luck I didn't get seriously hurt or killed. Or worse, gotten my friends hurt or killed, too." He heard Kratos give a small huff that sounded suspiciously like an amused chuckle and shot him a glare. "What?" he demanded, immediately offended that the guy would laugh at him for admitting he wasn't as strong as he thought.

"Lloyd, you will grow stronger." the russet-haired man told him with such certainty in his voice that Lloyd blinked dumbly for a few seconds. Was that... a compliment? From _Kratos_?

"Huh?" The word escaped him before he could hold it back and Kratos just nodded, glancing back over his shoulder to be sure Adam was still behind them. Lloyd followed his gaze, unable to hold back a grin at the blonde trudging along and yawning every few seconds.

"It is easy to continue recklessly swinging a sword, and I suppose that would be enough to dispatch the weakest of monsters or take care of the average enemy." the mercenary went on conversationally, even doing a little shrug as he spoke, "But it won't serve you when faced with a truly strong opponent." He looked at Lloyd again, and the dual swordsman caught a glimpse of pride in the older man's eyes. "You, Lloyd, are in the midst of realizing this. Therefore, you will undoubtedly grow even stronger."

He blushed, smiling widely and feeling oddly happy that he'd made Kratos proud with just that bit of talking with him. "You... you think so? Really?" he asked eagerly and just about felt himself light up at the man's slight nod. He didn't even mind when Kratos carefully placed a hand on his head, ruffling the brunet's hair a little and in a way that tugged at those dusty half-forgotten memories again.

"Grow strong, Lloyd." the mercenary whispered and pulled his hand away. Lloyd missed having the contact between them for all of two seconds, before the memory was once again swept away by his eagerness to share his new knowledge with Adam. He was rewarded with a yelp of protest and ran ahead of Kratos in peals of laughter, the Wonder Chef chasing after him with a red face.


	13. Magnius in Palmacosta

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

The road to Hakonesia Peak was fairly level and flat, with mostly plains broken up with the occasional small forest and copse of trees. It ran close enough to the shoreline that the group could see a stretch of ocean in the distance, glittering under the sunlight, so Colette was finding everything to be just so beautiful and wonderful. This was the world she was going to save, the world she would regenerate for her friends. Despite her lingering fears and doubts, it made her feel honored, and as she watched Genis and Adam fuss over the soup for dinner, she felt comforted that part of her would be watching over them all after the journey was done.

"Why the heck are you adding double the amount of red satay to that bowl?" Genis exclaimed in disbelief, staring at the Wonder Chef as the other blonde measured out extra spoonfuls of the spicy powder.

"I'm testing something, that's all." Adam returned with a sheepish expression, screwing the lid back onto the little glass jar. And then Lloyd ran by, rapidly poked his fingers down the length of the chef's spine and dashed off laughing madly as the poor boy nearly went into a twitch fit. _"Lloyd!"_

Colette pursed her lips together tightly and got up from her seat on her blanket to find the brunet. He seemed to be taking things a bit too far. She unfurled her wings and fluttered along until she found Lloyd relaxing on a large flat rock, gazing up at the darkening sky. They had made camp just a little ways off the main road for the night despite the dual swordsman wanting to keep moving forwards even through that. It was a good time for her to sit with him and just talk, right after letting him know -gently, of course- that he really shouldn't be so direct to poor Adam.

"Lloyd, what are you doing here by yourself?" she asked as she touched down by him, taking him by surprise. He looked up at her, blinked, and smiled while she seated herself beside him, clacking her boots together.

"Nothing, really. Are you feeling okay? Did you eat yet?" Lloyd returned and Colette blushed a little at the sound of concern in his voice. That was something she could always count on with him. Lloyd always wanted to make sure his friends were okay at any time, more so after something especially trying happened recently. She supposed that he was still worried about what happened at the Seal of Fire.

It also didn't help that she kept picking at her food. Nothing seemed to have any taste and she just couldn't seem to get an appetite for eating.

"I'll be fine!" Colette chirped brightly and looked up at the sky, smiling at the stars. "It's beautiful tonight. There are a lot more stars we can see here than back home in Iselia." she added and Lloyd hummed in agreement. They sat together in companionable silence and she began to think that, maybe, they didn't need words. Just this was fine. With this she could draw extra comfort for the journey.

It had completely slipped her mind to talk to Lloyd about his scaring Adam so much until the chef walked up to them from behind. "Lloyd, Colette, dinner's ready." the other blonde told them cheerfully, holding two wooden bowls full of soup, "I brought you some. Genis did a great job on it, it's spicy and delicious!" Lloyd eagerly reached out for his serving but Colette worried that she wouldn't be able to eat as much again and set her friends to worrying over her again. She was about to try and make up an excuse to put off eating in front of the brunet when Adam put the second bowl into her hands, catching her eyes with a smile.

"I think you'll like _this_ soup, Colette." he murmured and she blinked at the mischievous look on his face, "I helped to make it, just for you." And Colette just couldn't help but blush horribly at that, feeling a bit awkward and shy all of a sudden. Beside her, Lloyd went tense, and the motions of moving the spoon from the bowl to his mouth became a little more wooden.

"Um, uh... thank you, Adam!" Colette stammered out, forcing a smile to her face as she lifted a spoonful of soup to her mouth. Dread wormed its way through her; she really didn't want to experience another mouthful of blandness, but Adam was watching her expectantly and Colette was sure that Lloyd was too. Steeling herself for disappointment, she stuck the spoonful of soup into her mouth... and her eyes widened in surprise when she finally tasted something. _Spicy!_ There was a taste of spice and little else, but the fact remained that she had _actually_ tasted something.

"It's pretty good, huh, Colette?" Lloyd asked her with a smile, already halfway through his own meal. She nodded absently, taking in several more spoonfuls and relishing the flavor. Oh, she _missed_ that, missed tasting something in her mouth when it came to meals. Her serving was only half of what was in Lloyd's bowl, so when Colette couldn't force herself to swallow any more, even with the taste restored to her temporarily, she handed the bowl back over to the chef and the brunet didn't think to ask her if she should eat a little more. "Can I get seconds?" he asked eagerly instead, holding out his bowl as well.

"If you like, the pot is back there..." Adam pointed towards Genis and blinked rapidly as the brunet cheered and dashed off with the bowl in hand, "Ah. All right."

"How did you do that?" Colette asked him as soon as she was sure Lloyd was gone. Her eyes were still wide with surprise that she had actually tasted anything, and she wanted to know desperately how the Wonder Chef had managed that little miracle. He winced, looking almost ashamed of himself with the way he glanced aside and lifted his shoulders a little.

"I served out your portion in advance, and then added in double the amount of red satay. It would overwhelm anyone else who tasted it, but I thought that it would be enough for you to pick up _some_ flavor." he admitted with a little frown, "Altering the recipe like that, it's not something to be proud of, but I just couldn't stand to think that you wouldn't be able to eat because you can't taste anything."

She was touched, really she was. Colette smiled at him, happy that he'd gone through the trouble for her even as she lifted her hands up to over her heart again. "Oh, I'm sorry that you had to change the recipe for me, but thank you so much for letting me taste again." she told him and Adam chuckled, looking back at her with a more genuine smile.

"It's all right, you don't have to apologize." he returned and she nodded.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I'll, um, try harder next time." Colette watched him chuckle weakly at her words and head back to the campfire. As she watched him leave, she wondered to herself what was wrong with her for that sinful wish she had in Palmacosta, when Adam asked to study with Cacao's mother and Colette suddenly hoped that he would stay and train with the woman. He was nice and he was trying hard to be helpful to everyone and he even managed to get her to taste again, so why did she feel like it would be better if he stayed behind?

"Not very Chosen-like at all." she sighed to herself, sliding off the rock and making her way back to camp as well.

.

They traveled over a bridge on the main road, keeping their eyes out for rogues and brigands that would try to attack and rob them as they walked. Since they were a small group, they looked like an easy target and even though they showed the would-be robbers otherwise, it still wasn't enough to make them leave the party alone. Colette kind of wished the robbers would give up and start new lives in a nice town somewhere; she really didn't like fighting them after seeing desperation in their eyes.

Adam seemed to think like her there, walking beside her with a sad look on his face. That was one of the qualities about him that Colette liked best; he was kind and gentle and didn't like fighting either, but he was doing what he could to help keep her safe so she could regenerate the world. For that, she was grateful and thought of him as a good friend too.

When they stopped for resting or to camp for the night, he was always the one to serve her lunch or dinner, over-spiced of course so she could get a bit of flavor and that helped her choke down some food. Colette's stomach kept rebelling even then, but she just smiled and endured it. Her appetite might be vanishing on her but that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy flavors for as long as she could.

Sometimes, Adam wouldn't get the chance to give her a meal. Lloyd had taken up training with Kratos and Colette noticed how her dear friend would keep watch on the chef, even from just glancing at him out of the corners of his eyes. Then just before the other blonde could get started on helping Genis cook, Lloyd would pounce and drag him off to train too, smiling broadly as he ignored Adam's protests and followed Kratos to whatever training ground he'd chosen for them. Those were the times that Colette would sigh and pass her plate to Noishe.

When they finally reached Hakonesia Peak, she took the time to look around the rest stop built alongside the gate dividing south from north. There were a couple of small shops for restocking food and other goods, and then there was one large house that had all sorts of strange objects scattered around it. Raine tilted her head, hand up to her mouth and cradling her elbow with the other in that pose that she knew meant their teacher was thinking very hard about something.

"Most likely, the imposters meant that they would be selling the Book of Regeneration to whomever lives in that building there." she finally decided and strode towards the big house, the rest of the group hurrying to follow.

* * *

Raine's initial observation upon entering the old man's home was of how cluttered it was, so full of various artifacts and other antiquities. Part of her was howling to start examining everything but priority was on retrieving the stolen book. The old man stood nearby, leaning heavily on his cane as he fairly leered at her, cheeks pulled back in a wide smile that only added to the wrinkles already etched into his face.

"Hello there, my lovely." he greeted happily, "I am Koton, collector of fine antiques and rare artifacts. If you're looking for road passes to get through the gate outside, they're a mere hundred million gald per person."

"Wha-? What kind of price is **that**?" Lloyd blurted in outrage, scowling at the old man. Raine sighed; typical Lloyd, interrupting before the voices of reason could lead the conversation. "That's highway robbery! I oughta report you!" The man simply turned to give him a nasty glare, nose wrinkling up in a sneer.

"Silence, boy! I'll have you know I hate men!" he snapped, "Lazy blockheads, the lot of you, and no respect at all! Just keep your mouth shut!" Lloyd opened his mouth, ready to protest, when Kratos simply reached out and grabbed him by the shoulder, pulling the brunet back and shaking his head. To Raine's surprise, Lloyd bit back his words, still flushed with anger but very much silent.

"Hm, with a price like that, even those on pilgrimages with the Church of Martel can't pass through the gate." she mused aloud, turning her attention back at the extravagant cost of road passes. Koton looked back at her, all smiles and lusty appreciation in his eyes again.

"Well, well, aren't you a beauty!" he cooed, "If you're on a pilgrimage, you should join on the Asgard ruin tour at the Palmacosta travel agency. It has wonderful rates and guaranteed protection on the roads!" Raine felt her eyebrow rise as Lloyd fidgeted and growled behind her from his place at Kratos's side. Genis's mouth dropped open in surprise and realization.

"You're in cahoots with Chocolat's travel agency!" he exclaimed, earning a scowl in his direction as well.

"Oh, shut up! Little brat... if you don't have any money, then get out of here!" Koton snapped and turned his back on all of them, tending to a particularly old vase with obviously more affection than he gave other people. Raine glowered at the old man herself; she could take being leered at by this lewd human, but insulting her dear brother? Not on her life. She prepared to give him the smacking of a lifetime, teeth clenched tightly together.

"Hm? That's a very old scripture..." Colette suddenly remarked, and all heads turned to see the blonde fledgling angel standing by a pedestal that held a battered old book. Its pages were open, tiny and intricate writing covered the aged paper. Raine's interest went from beating up Koton to wondering if Colette was actually reading the words. Koton's interest immediately went to Colette.

"Oh, my beautiful maiden! You have a good eye!" he purred, rubbing his hands together over the head of his cane. Raine could just feel the rage building in Lloyd behind her, and the rustling of cloth that was Kratos struggling to keep the boy held back. "This here is something I purchased from the Chosen of Mana." Koton went on proudly, tottering over to pass his fingers over the pages delicately, "It's a very rare scripture record that contains the Legend of Spiritua!"

The group gasped collectively, Raine's hand flying up to her heart. That scripture... that was the Book of Regeneration! Koton went on, oblivious to the stunned looks on the faces of his guests.

"I've been wanting to get my hands on it for ages!" he chortled, "I'd just about given up on Dorr ever letting go of it; he just wouldn't sell his precious heirloom for anything." He sighed happily, eyes going starry with awe. "It was _very_ fortunate that the Chosen herself was willing to part with it, considering how valuable it is!"

"Hey! Old man!" Lloyd barked out, and Raine internally cringed at where this was going. Good Goddess, couldn't he learn just this once to stay quiet and let the adults deal with this mess? "Let us have that! ...Or at least, let us look at it." he amended his words quickly, muttering 'There, you happy now, Kratos?' under his breath.

"Quite." Kratos returned in the same cool tone he was known for with them.

Koton snorted incredulously. "You've got to be kidding. Why should I show it to you people?" he declared as though he'd just been gravely insulted. Genis sighed harshly, glaring up at the old man.

"Oh, come **on**!" he returned in that faintly arrogant tone that Raine just knew meant trouble would come if he didn't shut up _immediately_, "Colette is the Cho-..." He never finished, as she turned and slapped him hard across the head, making him yelp in pain and cover his head, tears prickling at the corners of his eyes, "S-sis!"

"Stop. We'll be the ones treated like imposters if you say she's the Chosen after he's already been fooled into believing their lies." Raine hissed at him in a low tone, eyeing Koton's puzzled expression.

"The Cho? What's that?" he asked of her and Raine straightened to give him a weak smile.

"The Chosen of Mana's devout follower, of course!" she replied and made an effort to laugh innocently. Lloyd and Kratos gave her matching stares of blank expression, and she made mental note to whack them both with her staff later. "Ehm, she wishes to view articles that the Chosen has possessed." She gestured towards Colette, who stood there looking a little lost but managed a tiny smile and a wave towards the old man, "Colette is a faithful believer and is versed in the language of the angels. Reading a scripture like the Book of Regeneration would be a dream come true for her."

"Ah... yes! That's right!" Colette agreed, readily going along with the story since this part at least was truth, "I've studied it since I was a child." Koton scratched at his chin, nodding approvingly as he gazed at the fledgling angel.

"Well," he mused aloud, "if it's that important to you, the maiden and the beauty can have a look at it." A light seemed to go off in his eyes and Raine decided she didn't like the look of it. He smiled then, a calculating sort of grin that he turned on her. "More than anything, I want the Spiritua Statue that is displayed in the House of Salvation." Koton practically purred at them, "If you bring me _that_, I'll consider showing you the book."

Genis scoffed again, before Raine could even formulate a reply to such a brazen demand. "You're so stingy! Like it costs **you** anything to just let us _look_ at it." he retorted in irritation and Koton seemed to snap, shaking his cane at the boy in a fury.

_"Shaddap!"_ he raged, and Lloyd yelped in alarm, reaching forward and grabbing the little half-elf, then pulling him back to safety. Raine flashed him a grateful look even as the group began edging backwards to the door. "Get the heck outta here if you don't have money and don't have the statue!" The old man kept waving the stick around, reaching out with a free hand to slap the book closed so Colette wouldn't be able to glimpse much more of its secrets. _"Out!"_

In very short order, they were all chased outside and Raine huffed indignantly as Lloyd, Genis and Colette breathed sighs of relief that they were safe. "Well, that was rather rude!" she declared, ignoring the groans around her.

* * *

Genis scowled as he gave one last glare at the house where Koton hoarded all his junk. Beside him, Lloyd grumbled under his breath about how stupid all this was, and Genis was inclined to agree, nodding his head emphatically.

"Yeah, he was just stubborn and stingy and... gah!" he declared, "Isn't that right, Adam?" He blinked at the lack of an answer and looked around, Lloyd mirroring his movements as well with round eyes.

"Oh man, come to think of it, he didn't go inside with us at all, did he?" the brunet asked worriedly, "Where is he?" Genis laid eyes on a large group of people all gathered together in front of the gate to the trail as he scanned the area. For a second he wondered what they were all doing there, then he gave a little yelp as he spotted the Wonder Chef among the travelers. He was talking with one of them and looked very worried about something. Bad news, maybe?

"He's over there." Genis pointed out and loped over to join the blonde, his sister and the rest of the party hurrying to catch up to them. "Hey! Adam! What are you doing?" he called out excitedly. The blonde turned his eyes towards them but that worried -heck, he looked scared, really- expression never left his face.

"Hmm?" Lloyd suddenly hummed in confusion, pulling up beside him and finally noticing the other people loitering in fear before looking towards Adam in concern, "What's wrong? Why are all these people here? And why didn't you come inside the old guy's house with us?"

"L-Lloyd..." Adam murmured and looked away. Genis tilted his head, looking up at the blonde. He looked awful pale. What happened this time? A woman turned at the sound of Lloyd's questions and gave him an astonished look, one hand rising to her cheeks.

"You don't know?" she asked of him and looked around at the rest of the party, all of whom -except for Kratos and Genis wasn't surprised at all by that- simply shook their heads, "My, you're lucky then."

"You all would be better off waiting here for a while, if that's the case." a second traveler, a stout man who decided to sit on an old bench to rest, remarked with a firm nod, "No matter what, you should stay away from Palmacosta!"

Genis gasped in alarm as Lloyd narrowed his eyes at the man, reaching out almost absently to grab Adam by the sleeve of his shirt and tug him back to the group. "Why?" he demanded in a tone that seemed more suited to Kratos, "Did something happen in Palmacosta?" The tour guide for the group nodded, worried expression on her face.

"It seems the Desians are headed for Palmacosta. Our escorts spotted them on the main road and we stopped at the House of Salvation to wait for them to pass." she explained to him, "After they moved on, we came straight here as fast as we could. That road goes to a lot of places, but the biggest city connected to it is Palmacosta."

The party looked at one another in concern and Lloyd stared at the tour guide in shock. Genis didn't blame him; just knowing that a group of Desians was marching towards the city they just left, remembering people they knew there, made him feel ill. What if they were hurt? What if they were taken to a Desian ranch?

"Plus, they say the leader of the nearby human ranch, Magnius, is with them." the guide went on, eyebrows furrowing together as she lowered her voice, like what she was saying was some big secret, "We're going to stay here until things cool down and we hear word that it's safe to travel again. It'd be a good idea if you guys stayed here too."

Lloyd scowled, shaking his head, and Genis sighed in dismay. _'We're gonna be going after them, aren't we?'_ he thought to himself, and smacked his palm against his face when the brunet immediately turned and started running for the road. Raine called his name and the party gave chase, hurrying to catch up to Lloyd and talk some sense back into him. _'Fat load of good that'll do. He's a lost cause when it comes to picking fights with Desians.'_

* * *

They were back on the main road within a matter of hours, and Lloyd fumed the whole time. So many things stacking up on him, he felt like he was going to explode.

"Gah! What's that avaricious old geezer's problem?" There was just no way he could vent about the Desians or the imposters without swearing himself into a streak of trouble, so the snobby old man was going to be his topic of choice. Raine snapped her head around to look at him with an astonished expression, eyes lighting up and cheeks tinted pink.

"Oh my!" she exclaimed in a trilling voice that snapped Lloyd out of his rage abruptly. What the-?

"Wh-what is it, Professor?" he questioned in confusion. Why was she looking at him like that? It was making him feel a little awkward. He kind of wished she'd stop that.

"I can't believe you know the word 'avaricious'!" she cooed, eyes sparkling at him. Lloyd's expression fell. Was that it? She was going teacher-crazy just because he knew a word like that? Did she really think he was completely stupid? Well, that was just cold. "And you used it properly, too! That's fantastic!" His expression picked back up. Oh! She was _impressed_! Well, that just made it all great then, right? He blushed again, glancing away as he rubbed his head.

"Well, y-you don't have to praise me **that** much..." he mumbled, trying to sound modest even though he was secretly soaking up the praise and hoping everyone else heard too. He glanced over at Colette and Adam walking side by side with Genis; had they heard? Colette smiled at him proudly... Adam just had a strangely unreadable expression on his face, didn't even look at him.

"But it's a miracle!" Raine went on, all but wriggling in place, her hands flying up to her cheeks. Lloyd could have sworn the air around her was sparkling. His face burned but he puffed himself up, trying not to wonder why a lack of response from the Wonder Chef deflated his enthusiasm a bit.

"Hehehehe! You're making me blush..." Lloyd preened. Genis gave him a flat glare, mouth quirked into a wry smile.

"Lloyd, she's making fun of you." he pointed out and the brunet drooped almost immediately, giving the Professor another look and spotting the tell-tale twitching of the corners of her mouth that meant she was trying desperately not to laugh. Sputtering and feeling the flares of anger rise back up, Lloyd reached out and smacked the boy upside the head.

"Shut it, Genis!" he exclaimed and scowled to himself as the smaller boy yelped in pain, clutching his head. Well, now that he couldn't fume over the old man anymore, time to move on to the other two things pissing him off.

At the rate they were going, they would just barely make it into the city after the Desians. It could be too late to stop them from doing anything; it would definitely be too late to warn the people. He folded his arms over his chest as he walked, grumbling to himself. Not only would they lose out on reaching Palmacosta before the Desians, but they'd be giving the imposters even more distance to get away. The Book of Regeneration might be found in the hands of that old man, but that Carlotta lady still had Adam's ring.

And so for the few days they traveled back down to Palmacosta, the anger and frustration churned within him until Lloyd was charging the last few yards to the city's gate, yelling in a fury as the others raced to catch up to him.

"Lloyd!" Adam exclaimed, and the brunet pulled up short at the burst of white smoke that appeared before him, clearing to reveal the Wonder Chef standing in his path with the giant fork raised as barricade. "Wait a moment! What are you doing?" he cried in alarm, "If you run straight at them, you'll only get hurt!"

"Geh! Adam, get out of the way!" Lloyd snapped back, gesturing one arm furiously as if it would be enough to sweep the blonde away, "If those Desians cause trouble in Palmacosta, they're going to pay! I don't need you to slow me down!" Kratos dashed to his side and grabbed his shoulder, keeping him in one place until the rest of the group arrived, gathering in a semi-circle around him.

"Lloyd, calm down. What's wrong?" Raine asked of him, an expression of confusion and concern on her face. Lloyd looked around at his friends, frustrated even further. Didn't they get it? Didn't they _understand_? Maybe it was because none of them knew what happened in Iselia, saw the devastation, except for Genis.

So why wasn't Genis defending him?

"When I left Iselia, I _swore_ I'd never let the Desians have their way again!" Lloyd returned in a near growl, the memory of that day rushing back to him like it just happened again, a festering wound in his mind that would only heal with revenge. "I've got to hurry and stop them here, right now!"

"Losing your cool will only lead to poor decisions." Kratos remarked in that same damningly neutral tone. Didn't the man feel **anything**? Anything at all?

"A daunting recipe without proper preparations will result in culinary disaster." Adam agreed with a firm nod, "First and foremost being that you calm down and..."

"Oh, both of you just shut up!" Lloyd snapped at both mercenary and chef, ignoring in the haze of anger how the latter flinched back fearfully from him, "While we're here wasting time with talking, those Desians could be murdering innocent people!" Kratos just gave him a cool look, a brick wall as always.

_"Lloyd!"_ Raine's voice jolted him and he turned his head to listen despite wanting to press on. Some things were just habit, and this was one of them. "Your feelings are always honest and pure; there's no doubt you will do everything you can to help these people." the silver-haired elf began hotly, giving him her most stern look, "Nevertheless, that's **not** a reason to ignore the advice of your comrades."

That was a figurative slap to the face, and Lloyd flinched back, face flushing and mind reeling to find a good reaction to that. "But I..." he floundered helplessly, trying to put together an argument, but her gaze went on without even a flicker of her eyelashes, glowering at him with all her teacher's fury.

"We **are** worried about Palmacosta." Raine told him firmly, "But we're also worried about you, understand?" She gestured towards Colette and Genis, and Lloyd looked to them to see the concerned looks on their faces. He flinched again, the bitter taste of shame rising in his mouth, and he couldn't bear to look at them anymore, eyes falling to his boots.

"...I'm sorry..." he said at last, and meant it. Once again he'd been stupid in what he was doing and saying. He lifted his gaze, determined to let them know he really regretted what he did. "I shouldn't have acted like that." Raine's expression softened, but only a little.

"...That's better." she agreed, folding her arms over her chest, "But am **I** the one to whom you should be apologizing?" Lloyd grimaced slightly. That's right; he didn't lash out at the Professor, but at Kratos and... He cringed, wondering just how badly he messed up with Adam, but he turned around to face them both anyway.

"Kratos, Adam, I was wrong to yell at you like that." he apologized to the two of them, "I'm sorry."

To his surprise, Kratos's expression seemed to soften, if only around the eyes. He tipped his head a little to accept the apology. "I take no offense. At any rate, we should head to Palmacosta's central plaza." he returned in that smooth tone again, "If the Desians plan for anything, it would take place there, in full view of the Governor-General's official building. We should move quickly, but carefully." Lloyd nodded and Kratos turned to lead the way into the city, the others following him until only he and Adam remained, the blonde watching him warily from the corner of his eye.

Lloyd rubbed at the back of his neck, uncertain of where he stood with the other boy now. He also wasn't sure of what to say. Did he have to do another apology? When he lifted his head to speak, he yelped instead, startled to find that Adam had moved closer to him, eyes closed as though trying to hear something. After a moment, the blonde opened them and looked up at him with a puzzled expression.

"You're an unusual person, Lloyd." he finally remarked and Lloyd just gave him a flat glare.

"You bounce around with a giant fork, disguised as random pieces of junk, to talk about food, and you call **me** 'weird'?" he retorted, but he couldn't help the grin that spread over his face at Adam's embarrassed blush. The blonde stepped away quickly, raising a fist to cough into delicately.

"Ah, well... never mind. It's a moot point now anyway." Adam replied and gave Lloyd a small smile, "At any rate, I also accept your apology." Lloyd blinked at him a few times. Okay... so things were fine, then? He knew the guy talked a little weird, but sometimes he wished Adam would tone that down some. Loosen up a little, or something.

"You sound an awful lot like Kratos, the way you talk." he commented, smiling sheepishly when the blonde glared at him sternly.

"Please never compare me to him again." Adam admonished and turned to walk into the city, "Now, are we to do something about the Desians or not? Rest assured, I may not be able to act against them in the manner you wish, but I can provide support in other ways." Lloyd hurried after him, feeling lost by the Wonder Chef's words and a little annoyed by that. Oh well, whatever. At least they were going to do something about the Desians!

* * *

As the party entered the plaza, the first thing Adam noticed was the _feel_ of the air had changed dramatically. He gagged, one hand rising swiftly to cover his mouth. Terror, hate, anger, contempt, so much of it saturated the air. He shook his head, pushing that away and focusing on the plaza. A platform had been built with a hangman's noose in place, the structure surrounded by uniformed Desian soldiers and fearful citizens of Palmacosta. He gasped as he recognized the figure that now wore that noose around her neck, standing on the platform and bound in rope.

"Cacao!" Adam murmured in alarm and dashed away from the others, ignoring their soft cries for him to come back. He made for a nearby alley, leaping up to rebound off the walls between the two buildings and scale them. Agility and speed were high priorities drilled into him since his youth, important skills for a future Wonder Chef to learn to evade, escape, remain as much a mystery as possible. Those lessons he then turned to the pursuit of rebelling against Cruxis, and he tried to keep himself in shape as best he could, as he had on the Ossa Trail.

He reached the roof of the house and darted along the shingles, keeping his profile low as his eyes searched out a route that would take him around the plaza and position him behind the platform. Even from up here, Adam could hear the voices of the crowd below.

"That's _Lord_ Magnius to you, vermin!" a harsh, arrogant voice bellowed out, followed by a sickening crack that he recognized as bone breaking. The scent in the air shifted to include fresh death and Adam shivered before making the jump across to another building. Why? Why did someone have to die for no reason?

And why was he so weak that he couldn't do anything to avert it?

Another voice rose over the crowd's murmurs and shocked cries. "This woman has defied the wishes of the great Lord Magnius and refused to provide us with supplies." a Desian declared imperiously, "Therefore, while the designated death count has been exceeded, we have been granted orders to carry out this woman's execution!"

"Not while I'm here." Adam muttered, reaching the Palmacosta Academy's roof and carefully climbing down its drainpipe to the ground. He couldn't risk teleporting in, not with so many half-elves around and his top-down view on the alleys would be no good in helping him orient for quick teleports. Best he could do would be to sneak in on foot, grab Cacao while none of the Desians were paying much attention to her and then run for it.

He touched down just in time to hear Chocolat's despairing cry cut into the air. "Mom!" Adam straightened in the shadows of the alley and looked past the platform, clenching his teeth as the tourist guide hurried towards her mother, ignoring Desian demands for her to stop right where she was. What was she doing here? Where were Lloyd and the others? Considering how fired up Lloyd had been, Adam had thought he would have started a battle already. One would certainly be a useful distraction to help him rescue the item shop owner.

"...begging for death!" Part of a Desian's threat was lost as the blonde shut his eyes tightly and focused on the placement of the buildings and people around him. He stood in the narrow space between the Palmacosta Academy and the Church of Martel, before him the hangman's noose, Desians and Magnius standing in a half-circle before it and Chocolat directly in front. If he ran out to save Cacao before Chocolat could be moved or taken out of the situation, he wouldn't be able to save them both. And Adam wasn't going to leave either of the women to the cruelties of the Desians.

Wait... Magnius was moving to the platform...

The Desian leader's booming laughter suddenly filled the air, snapping Adam out of his concentration. He opened his eyes to see Magnius gesture into the air, red hair styled in bizarre dreadlocks that flared out like a spiral-flower at the back of his head. It bounced with the motion, distracting Adam until he heard Chocolat scream. Something flew through the air towards Magnius and the hulking half-elf took immediate offense.

"You _disgusting_ little _vermin_!" he raged, leaping down from the platform and storming towards the source of his ire. Spying his chance, Adam darted forward, running with soft, quick steps over the cobblestone until he slipped underneath the platform. He pulled his cape up and swept it over himself, concentrating first on a disguise to blend into the environment. The Wonder Fork hummed against his back, first in protest -it never liked being used without being in his hands-, then again as the familiar wave of mana passed over him, building a safe illusion around his body that the cape had been designed to support. Once done, Adam then began eyeing the underside for the hinges that would show him which way the drop-doors would open.

"Stop right there!" Lloyd's voice called out forcefully, and Adam blinked at the little shiver that ran up his spine at hearing him. Strange. Maybe the adrenaline of all this action was affecting him. The scent of blood tainted the air, and he shifted in place to peer out over the edge of his cape, careful not to move so much he broke his own illusion. Magnius was crouched in place, growling in pain and anger while surrounded by some of his guard.

"Isn't that...?" one Desian murmured to another, words mostly lost among the gasps and mumblings of the crowd around them.

"Yeah, it's him." the other agreed and raised his voice, "You! You're wanted criminal Number 0074, Lloyd Irving!" Magnius scoffed suddenly and got to his feet, hand pulling away from a shallow wound as though it didn't bother him in the slightest.

"Well now! So **you're** that boy with the Exsphere!" he gloated and laughed harshly, "This is perfect! After I take that Exsphere from you, they'll make **me** the leader of the Five Grand Cardinals!" He gestured again. "Get them!" One of the guards began chanting a spell, a circle of red light appearing at his feet as runes traced themselves out. Adam bit his lip, holding his cape tighter around him. As much as he wanted to dispel it, he couldn't risk letting himself be seen in any way; absorbing that magic would be a dead giveaway that the Wonder Chef was in the area and actively interfering with Desian movements. It would reveal his intentions too soon.

_'Lloyd, Colette, everyone, please be safe! Be careful and don't get hurt!'_

A _Fireball_ spell was unleashed, and Adam traced its flight until it impacted Genis's _Force Field_, the little boy placing himself in front of Lloyd and Colette to protect them. He smiled as Genis strutted away smugly, then turned to watch the drop-doors more carefully, ignoring Magnius's raging. He had to time this right; the Desians had to see Cacao drop to believe she was properly executed so he would have a headstart after cutting her free of the noose.

Cutting her free... Adam uttered a soft gasp as he realized he'd forgotten to get a knife for this moment. Chocolate cried out again, this time in horror, and he looked up to see the doors drop open, Cacao's feet appearing before him and kicking frantically for support. Colette's voice called out in defiance, and the next thing he knew, a swish in the air told him that one of her chakrams had flown over the platform, and Cacao dropped unceremoniously to the ground, gasping for air.

Now! Adam threw off the illusion, bending to her side to undo the noose and give her that much needed air. She looked up at him wildly, mouth open -to scream, to ask something, he didn't care right now-, but he lifted a finger to his own lips, shushing her frantically. "We're here to help you! Come with me!" he explained hurriedly. Whatever was going on in the plaza now no longer mattered, just escape. Cacao was able to get to her feet somewhat unsteadily with his help, her hands still bound behind her back. Adam untied those quickly and led her out from under the platform, running for a nearby alley.

There were shouts, they'd been spotted, and Adam glanced back to see a few Desian soldiers had broken away from the rest to give chase, the other soldiers clustered protectively around Magnius as he knelt wounded before Kratos. Oh, this wasn't good. He pulled the older woman along faster, trying to get more of a lead as he reached back for the fork. With the plan he had in mind, he was going to need it to not protest so much.

Although, considering _exactly_ what it was he was planning, it would protest anyway.

Cacao groaned softly in pain and exhaustion, and Adam had little choice but to give it a try. He finally got the artifact into his hand and lifted it as he brought himself and the woman to a stop, panting softly. He shut his eyes, focused as hard as he could on what he wanted to happen, and prayed it would work.

"Please, _please_, let me be strong enough, just this once!" he murmured fervently, "Let me be able to carry two people through!" He firmly planted the image of Cacao's shop in mind, at the base of the stairs leading to the upstairs living quarters. No one else would be there at this time, so it would be safe. The sound of many footsteps drew closer, Cacao gasping in alarm as she pulled her shawl closer around herself, and Adam focused harder. The Wonder Fork hummed again, passing a wave of its power over him, preparing for the teleport, and seemed to hesitate on folding Cacao's body into the equation. "Please, please, _please_, just this _once_, pretend I have the power to do it!" Adam begged softly, like the thing could understand him, "Let me save her!"

And finally the power flowed over Cacao, oh so slowly and cautiously, wrapping her up beside him and Adam willed the teleportation to happen. His mind grew hazy as his strength was drained to fuel the teleport, a larger blast of white smoke than usual erupting around the two of them to shield them from view. Teleporation hadn't left him disoriented since the first few times Adam had performed the feat during his early days of being Wonder Chef, but now as he and Cacao dropped lightly onto the clean wood floor of the item shop, safe and sound from encroaching Desians, all he could think was how the world spun so very fast around him.

He didn't even know that he'd collapsed until he felt Cacao's arms around him, holding him up from falling face first into her floor. He shuddered, first from the physical contact, then from the chilling cold that washed over him as he let the fork drop out of his hand.

"Wonder Chef? Little Wonder Chef!" Cacao called to him worriedly, her voice distant and faint as she pulled her shawl over his shivering body, "Adam, what's wrong?"

Adam opened his mouth to speak, even as his head simply hung limply down, unable to bring enough strength to move that, but the world was fading fast. His hand was lifted in hers as Cacao continued calling his name and title, alternating between the two in her panic, and he managed a tiny squeeze for reassurance.

_"Zia... mi... dispiace..."_ Adam breathed out and finally let himself slip into that darkness, paying the price for attempting something beyond his skill level.


	14. Deal with Marble and Chocolat Kidnapped!

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

The battle after Magnius fled with part of his entourage wasn't as bad as he thought it'd be. Lloyd honestly figured they'd be much tougher, but he supposed all the training with Kratos was really helping him polish his style. He grinned at the memory of hearing gasps of awe when he pulled that_ Tempest_ on them, flying over the head of a startled Desian in a spin that had his blades just chew into bastard like he was paper.

His smile faded a little when he recalled seeing a couple of people hurriedly pull away the body of the young man Magnius had killed for no reason, their faces full of grief. It wasn't fair. Maybe if they'd come sooner, if they'd been a little faster...

He shook his head as he walked beside Chocolat, the group escorting her home and reassuring her that her mother would be fine even as she looked around frantically, ponytail a mess and face pale. Lloyd had seen Adam dash under the platform, transform into a pink clay pot -and internally groaned at how weak of a disguise it was- and then run off with Cacao once Colette freed her from the noose. He probably took her back to the item shop too, in a weird let's-run-all-over-the-city kind of way.

"Are you sure she's okay? Oh, Mom, please be okay." Chocolat whimpered again, her hand up to her mouth as she looked around again, eyes wet with tears.

"She's fine! I bet Adam's cooking up a snack for her right now!" Lloyd told her enthusiastically, trying to cheer her up. Chocolat sniffled and nodded, even as she glanced around again.

They entered the item shop, but there was no soft-spoken woman behind the counters, no eccentric blonde showing off a perfectly baked treat to them. Lloyd frowned slightly, growing a little worried as Genis and Colette looked around in a kind of search. Chocolat took a steadying breath and walked ahead, taking the lead. She pointed at a flight of stairs at the back of the shop.

"Maybe they're upstairs. That's where me and Mom live when the shop's closed." she explained and began leading them up the steps. Kratos lingered at the base, watching him, and Lloyd found it a little unsettling.

"Wh-what is it?" he finally ventured to ask, face coloring at the fact that the mercenary was just _staring_ at him. Kratos shook his head slightly.

"Nothing. I'm just surprised that you had allowed the Wonder Chef to act so rashly in the plaza." the older man remarked coolly, "I was under the assumption that you would be the first to rush over and pull him back to the group." Lloyd's blush deepened as he scowled.

"Hey, Adam can take care of himself! He's got his frying pan and that disguising stuff and teleporting stuff, right?" he shot back. He was fine! He **was**! And yet his stomach twisted a little just then, as though doubt crept in that maybe... he wasn't fine at all.

Little footsteps hammered down the stairs and Genis gripped the rails of the bannister, cherubic face flushed from the run and eyes wide with alarm. "Lloyd! We found Cacao upstairs, but she said Adam collapsed after he teleported them both here!" he cried and hurried back out of view.

"No!" the brunet breathed out, concern strangling his voice to a mere whisper. He rushed for the stairs, didn't even bother to stop and see what expression -if any- was now on Kratos's face. He stormed up them and into the first open room he saw, halting just within its doorway to take in the scene before him.

Cacao, Chocolat and his friends all sat on a bed on the far side of the room or in chairs around the little corner table just by the doorway, the space kind of cramped for all of them. Closer to the door, and thus closer to him, Adam lay in a second bed, soft blue blankets pulled over him up to his neck. He shivered every now and then, eyes closed and teeth clenching with every shudder that ran through him. Raine sat on the bed with him, one hand holding his in a light grip and her free hand holding her staff over him, the polished wood and metal glowing softly with light.

Lloyd jolted a bit when he felt a hand on his shoulder, looking up to see it was just Kratos before returning his attention to the chef and teacher. He stepped forward cautiously, stopping beside the bed himself. "Professor Sage... is Adam gonna be okay?" he asked worriedly. She glanced up at him, then offered a small smile.

"He'll be fine, Lloyd. He simply drained his mana in the teleportation; I'm restoring a small amount with a _Charge_ spell. With that, a little rest and a good meal, he'll be back to normal." she explained quietly, confidently, which reassured Lloyd immensely. He sighed, relaxing his shoulders and turning to the rest of the group.

"Genis! You dork, you had me thinking something was really wrong!" he berated with a grin, walking over to dig his knuckles into his best friend's head as punishment. Genis protested the treatment, waving his hands around in an attempt to shoo him off.

"In any case, thank you, all of you." Cacao told him with a faint smile from where she sat on the other bed. Chocolat nodded eagerly in agreement.

"Yes! Thank you _so_ much for saving my mom!" she added enthusiastically, her eyes still moist with happy tears, "I don't know what I would have done if those Desians had murdered my mom as well..." She trailed off, sniffling as she turned to hug Cacao tightly. Lloyd's brows furrowed together. That sounded a little odd. Genis seemed to catch it too, his gaze turning over to the two of them in confusion.

"As well...?" he echoed in a puzzled tone, head tilting curiously. Cacao nodded, her eyes darkening with grief that hadn't faded.

"My husband volunteered in Governor-General Dorr's army... and was killed in a battle against the Desians." she admitted, closing her eyes as a stray tear traced a path down her cheek, "And my mother... was taken to the ranch."

Silence fell over the room, heavy and uncomfortable. Lloyd felt his heart stop just for a moment, sympathizing with the grieving women before him. So that's why Chocolat was so angry and defiant to the Desians; they killed her dad and took her grandmother away. He understood that pain.

Chocolat pulled away from her mother and rubbed at her eyes before giving them all a determined expression. "It was Grandma that originally founded our shop." she told them fiercely, "We **have** to protect it, not just for ourselves but for Grandma's sake too, for when she returns! And I just know she'll come home one day!" Lloyd nodded, sharing in her determination.

"Yeah! Once the Desians are defeated, I bet your grandmother will be happy to see that you kept the shop safe for her." he agreed. She smiled at him brightly.

"Thank you." she told him, then looked out the window at the sky, "Well, I'd better get going. It's almost time for the next Asgard pilgrimage." Lloyd blinked, blank expression on his face.

"Asgard pilgrimage?" he repeated dumbly. Where had he heard that before? It was kind of familiar... Chocolat nodded eagerly, all bright smiles again.

"I work at the Church of Martel Travel Agency!" she told him cheerfully, "I told the Wonder Chef all about it the last time you guys were here." And Lloyd suddenly felt a little annoyed by the girl, annoyed that she had chatted about her agency thing with Adam that time. Funny, it didn't bother him when he first heard about it from the blonde, so why now? "But it's not like I _believe_ in Martel or anything." Chocolat went on flippantly, "It's just extra business to keep the shop going."

"Chocolat! How can you say such a thing?" her mother sounded scandalized that her daughter would say such blasphemy, which only served to irritate Lloyd more. He tried to shake it off -why was he so annoyed? He liked her determination to fight Desians!- and directed his attention to Raine and Adam as the conversation went on without him.

Professor Sage had lowered her staff, frowning slightly as she bent a little further down to study the dozing chef's face, her hand still gripping his gingerly. She had a suspicious expression on that soon faded, and she sat back with a little sigh of relief. Adam's shivering seemed to have stopped, and she tucked his arm back under the covers to help keep him warm while he slept. He turned back to the conversation in time to hear Chocolat sigh in resignation.

"Well, if the Chosen says Martel is real... then I'll at least _try_ to believe." she remarked, though her tone spoke how much she really didn't, "Anyway, I really have to go and guide the next group."

"Are there really people that want to go on a trip **right** after what just _happened_ here?" Lloyd asked incredulously. Really? What kind of nut sees Desians attack his hometown and then decides to go on a trip to some mountain and back?

"It's after events like this that both those with and without faith feel the need to go on a journey in search of salvation." Kratos told him sagely, sounding like the know-it-all Lloyd figured he was. Still, his words gave him something to think on. After he learned that Desians had murdered his mom, Lloyd wanted desperately to go on the world regeneration journey, wanting to see the end of the Desians with his own eyes as the world was saved. Maybe these people were kind of like that?

"That pretty much sums it up." Chocolat agreed with Kratos's words, "Well then, thank you all very much, for everything!" She faced Lloyd again with a grin. "I hope the Wonder Chef recovers soon." she added and blushed as she lowered her head, her hands clutching together over her heart, "Tell him... tell him that I'm really thankful that he saved Mom." Lloyd bristled, eyes narrowing slightly before he could shake that off as well, gaze following her as she left the room and shop. Good Goddess, what was coming over him? She just wanted to thank the guy and she couldn't because he was passed out on her mom's bed!

"We'd better be on our way, too." Genis finally decided, looking up at his sister, "Could we give Adam some Orange Gels? Those should give him back some mana in the meantime, and we have to go to the House of Salvation for that statue."

"I'd really prefer it if we allowed him time to rest and eat." the Professor argued. The sound of blankets shifting caught their attention and all heads turned to see Adam sit up, the heel of one hand pressed against his forehead, visible eye still tightly shut.

"...I'll be fine. I'm already feeling better." he murmured, lowering his hand and looking up at everyone's disbelieving faces, "Honestly, I just overtaxed myself with a double teleport, that's all."

"Adam, you collapsed in my arms when we arrived." Cacao admonished softly, a stern and motherly look on her face as she stood up and walked to his side, "You frightened me by how pale you looked, and you wouldn't stop shivering even after I put you to bed. How could I possibly face your father if I let you leave here in this condition?"

Lloyd caught sight of a dark expression flashing across Adam's face at that, but it was gone too fast for him to remark on it. Still, Cacao had a point there. "It would probably be a good idea if we stayed in Palmacosta for at least a night." he suggested to the Professor, "We could all use some rest before we hit the road again, and this gives Adam a chance to recover, right?"

The elf seemed to muse on that, eyes watching Adam carefully as her hand rose to cover her mouth thoughtfully. "Hm. You do have a good idea once in a while, Lloyd." she agreed slowly and his face fell. _'Only once in a while, Professor?'_ "Very well. We'll rent some rooms at the Skipper's Haven for the night and leave first thing in the morning."

"If it's possible, would you mind letting Adam stay here for the night?" Cacao asked her hesitantly, "There is... something I need to discuss with him." Lloyd looked up at her in surprise, as did Adam, the blonde's eye wide with confusion.

"What about?" he asked without thinking. The older woman shook her head.

"It's a matter concerning the Wonder Chef, both this one and his predecessor, so I can't divulge it to you." she told him. Lloyd tilted his head, trying to work out what she was trying to say.

"In other words, Lloyd, it's none of your business." Genis translated dryly. Lloyd's face colored again, but he didn't bother smacking the boy. It wasn't going to change that fact, so why bother?

"Then we'd best leave and get those rooms before it gets too dark." Kratos informed the group and turned to leave the little bedroom. One after another, everyone began filing out after giving Adam get well wishes. Colette bowed graciously to Cacao and told Adam she'd pray extra hard that night for his health before hurrying out. Lloyd lingered a little longer, still confused by his irritation with Chocolat and his worry for Adam.

"Lloyd, I'll be fine. Don't worry so much." the chef told him with a chuckle. Some color had returned to his face and Lloyd felt a bit better about that, mirroring his small grin. "Go ahead with the others. I'll see you in the morning. Promise." Adam went on cheerfully, "I am the Wonder Chef, after all. One of my recipes will put me to rights."

"Hehehe, I still don't get what you're saying, but you'll be okay, right? Spending the night here?" Lloyd asked with a laugh. The blonde nodded, still smiling, and Lloyd relaxed. "That's all that matters to me, then. See you tomorrow, Adam." He waved to him and Cacao and finally left on his own to join everyone outside the shop. For some reason, he didn't really believe that smile on the Wonder Chef's face. It reminded him too much of Colette's little fake giggles when she tried too hard to cover something up that she knew he wouldn't like.

What was Adam trying to hide?

* * *

He kept the smile in place until he was certain Lloyd was gone, then dropped it into a frown as he turned his gaze on Cacao. "What did you want to discuss that involves my father?" he asked almost coldly. The woman fidgeted, arranging her shawl several times.

"Perhaps we can talk about it after you've recovered more of your strength, Adam." she told him gently and he frowned deeper. A stalling tactic. Cute.

"I've recovered enough. Professor Sage's healing arts did very well in restoring my lost mana." Adam replied, gesturing with one hand dismissively, "I want to know what you wanted to discuss with me. Let's have that discussion; no one is around to bother us."

Cacao sighed and nodded before turning away to head towards an antique dresser. She knelt and opened the bottom drawer, rummaging around until she found what she was looking for. Adam waited patiently for her to come back and reveal the item, hands folded neatly in his lap and watching her with a curious expression. When she _did_ come back, it was with a small box, dusty with neglect. She sat on the bed beside him and opened the lid, the tiny hinges creaking a little in protest. When she reached in and pulled out an envelope, Adam's confusion grew immensely.

"This was left to my mother by your father on his last day training with us." Cacao murmured, passing the envelope to him. Adam took it gingerly, looking over its aged yellow appearance and his father's handwriting spelling out 'Marble' on the paper."It was also the last time I saw you until you came in with the Chosen and her entourage."

"I remember that day." he agreed softly, brow furrowing slightly as he recalled the events from his childhood, "Chocolat kept trying to trick me with white chocolate and dark chocolate bon bons, and was constantly frustrated that I always knew the difference. Father had asked for a private conversation with your mother, but even with my hearing, I couldn't make out what they discussed." Cacao smiled, chuckling a little.

"Ah, the bon bons. You never did say how you knew the difference despite..." she trailed off, gesturing towards Adam's eyes. He smiled, feeling mischievous, a familiar trait for him; he'd always been like that, no matter how he was raised.

"That's my little secret, I'm afraid. But I can say it is the same method I used to know who was near me at all times." he replied and went back to studying the envelope, turning it over to look at the wax seal. It bore the Wonder Chef Family's crest, the candlelit 'w' that was also embroidered into his cape and toque. The red wax circle was broken, the envelope had been opened. "Did you read this?" Adam asked curiously, tilting his head as he lifted the flap and began sliding the contents -a single page letter- out.

"The letter was open when I found it. I suppose Mother read it before she was taken away to the ranch." Cacao told him with a nod, "But yes, I did read the letter inside. As did Chocolat."

Adam lifted his gaze to the woman sharply. Why would she let Chocolat read it? Confusion gave way to suspicion, and he unfolded the letter to read the contents himself, brows furrowing together again as his eyes roved over the words. Once, twice... a third time, he read the paragraphs written on that yellowed paper, suspicion giving way to incredulity, giving way to shock, and finally a numbness and emotion that he thought might have been horror.

He shook his head, tried to get his thoughts and emotions back under control, and swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. He rubbed the paper between his thumb and fingers for lack of anything else to do, gaze still on the letter but no longer bothering to read the words. Anything to avoid looking up at Cacao.

"Father... he..." Adam began in a whisper-soft voice. He paused, swallowed again, started over. "Father arranged this? With Marble?" He sensed more than saw the nod of response. "Did you... do you... want me to... honor this?" he asked quietly. He rubbed the paper harder, pausing only when Cacao reached out to lay a hand over his to stop him. He flinched slightly at the contact, but felt no immediate urge to yank his hand away. _'Damn it, Lloyd, what are you __**doing**__ to me?'_

"Do **you** want to, Adam?" the shop keeper asked him, not unkindly. He swallowed again.

"I... I am the Wonder Chef." he began unsteadily, "This letter bears my crest and the agreement is written in my... predecessor's hand... And I am... honor-bound to..." He trailed off uncertainly when Cacao moved her hand to his chin, gripping it gently and lifting his head so he would be forced to meet eyes with her, hers gentle and understanding, his wide and probably panic-filled. He certainly felt like panicking. "...to... marry your daughter... Chocolat..." Adam finished weakly, "...as it... commands?"

"But do you **want** to, Little Wonder Chef?" she repeated her question with a faint smile. He grew confused again. Was she giving him a way out of this? The letter had been clear, from what he read of it; his father had arranged a marriage between him and Chocolat as children, in an attempt to extend the protection of the Wonder Chef Family to theirs as a sort of gift for being such a wonderful teacher. He'd been treated as a commodity, as a thing to be bestowed upon those who gained his father's favor, and -knowing his father- Adam would be expected to bend to that will and submit to that fate.

The idea of it hurt, and tears stung his eyes as he closed them, face twisting in anguish that he had to find out about the arrangement -find how his father thought of him- in **this** way, the letter crumpling in his grip.

"...N-No...!" he finally sobbed, and didn't protest when Cacao drew him closer to touch their foreheads together, the only form of 'hug' that he had deemed acceptable between them since he was a child. The circlet on his head dampened the contact, but he could still pick up enough of her emotions, a soothing wave of admiration, caring, warmth and familial love that gave him much needed support as he cried. The words in the letter had made him feel cold and alone, and this woman -with her own plights to grieve over- thought nothing of sharing heart and home with him in his own time of need.

Cacao was the closest Adam had to a mother, and he had barely recognized her when he first walked into the shop that he'd always considered a second home; vision had distorted the familiarity, and it was the exposure to the mana around him that reminded him of who they were, where he was. And he cried for the irony that his sight had blinded him.

Finally, the tears ended, and he rubbed the last traces away in embarrassment while Cacao watched him with her kind smile unchanging. "Does Chocolat expect me to go along with this?" he finally asked with a nervous laugh. The woman considered it, her smile growing a bit exasperated.

"Oh, she'd gotten a bit of a crush on you once she read the letter and remembered you had returned Mother's recipes." Cacao admitted with a chuckle, "But then she said, and these are her words, that she 'couldn't marry a stubborn fool who insisted that dark chocolate bon bons were white'!" She laughed and Adam couldn't help but join in, shaking his head.

"They **were** white!" he insisted laughingly, "But don't tell her that the only time she truly cornered me was when she handed me white chocolate and milk chocolate bon bons at the same time."

.

His night at the item shop passed peacefully; Adam had insisted on helping Cacao cook dinner when evening came, since Chocolat being on tour meant she would have left the city, and thus her mother would be alone. They ate together, talked of old times and caught up on one another's lives, and when night fell, he sheepishly took to sleeping in Chocolat's bed, turning his back on the woman out of modesty so she could go about her nightly routine.

In the morning, he barely had time for a slice of toast with a simple fried egg on it when Genis walked into the item shop with his sister close behind. Cacao looked over from where she sorted the stock on a display case and greeted them warmly. Adam just raised a hand, mouth full of toast and egg. _'Why didn't Lloyd come in? I had thought he would be the one to bound in and drag me off.'_ And then he wondered why he cared before dismissing the thought as just idle curiosity.

"Good morning, Cacao, Adam. How are you feeling?" Raine asked after her own greetings.

"Much better, thank you, Professor Sage." he replied brightly. Being in the shop, in Cacao's home, had given him a much-needed refuge from the negativity outside in the city; it was that above all else that helped him recover, especially after that encounter at Hakonesia Peak that had left him feeling drained. _'Why is it that everywhere I go, I keep running into hidden things that just saturate the environment with wrongness and decay?'_ He pushed the memory of it away as he and Cacao followed Genis and Raine outside the shop for final farewells.

"Take care of yourself out there, Little Wonder Chef." Cacao told him, straightening the collar of his cape around his neck. She bent forward, touching their foreheads together and he smiled up at her in appreciation. "Be safe from the Desians. You're with the Chosen and good people, so try to make some friends while you journey." she added. Adam's smile wilted a little, but he nodded anyway.

"Yes, _Zia_, I will." he said as convincingly as he could. _'But I don't __**want**__ to make friends with them, not really. I don't want to hurt anyone else when my time to die comes.'_ "Please take care of yourself too. I'll always remember how kind you were to me, you and Chocolat."

She gave him a puzzled smile, but waved in farewell as he went to meet with Lloyd. Adam noticed that he was standing close to Kratos, a pensive expression on his face that didn't seem normal for the brunet. What could be occupying his mind, what with him being so unbelievably dense?

"You doing okay now?" the dual swordsman asked once he was close enough. Adam nodded and was about to ask what was wrong with him instead but Lloyd beat him to it with a question of his own, wide-eyed innocent look on his face replacing the uncharacteristically thoughtful one. "Hey, what was that that you and Cacao did? With your heads touching like that?" the brunet asked abruptly, "Was she checking your temperature?"

"No." Adam sighed in exasperation. It grated on him that Lloyd would randomly butt into his personal space, but at least it was easier to deflect him from prying into his personal life. If only he would stop finding himself with a lowered guard around the brunet; it made it far too easy to let slip details of his past that no one needed to know about. "It is a form of affectionate physical contact that she and I developed when I was young, one of **very** few that I tolerate and actually enjoy." he explained dryly, wanting to be on the road already so he could get away from the sick sensations in the air that still hung over Palmacosta.

"Oh! So it's like a special kind of hug for you and Cacao!" Colette chirped, hands pressed together over her heart, "It's cute! You looked almost like a mother and son when you did that!" Adam blushed brightly, hand rising to his left eye out of habit before he forcibly jerked it back down.

"W-well, for a good part of my childhood, she _did_ fill that role for me. It's why I refer to her as my _zia_... ah, my aunt." he stammered back, tracing random runic characters into the back of his hand for lack of anything else to do with them.

"Kind of a hug... huh." Lloyd mused under his breath, watching Cacao chat with Raine a little before waving goodbye to them, "Hey, Adam?"

He flinched, resisting the urge to roll his eyes as he turned to the swordsman to see what he wanted now. "Yes, Lloyd-?" he began, cutting himself off with a tiny gasp of surprise when the brunet lowered his forehead to touch against his gently, a small grin on his face.

"I'm glad to see you're doing better." Lloyd told him, and Adam turned a faint shade of pink, picking up the wave of emotion directed at him. Friendship, amusement, interest, caring, confidence; it was just like with Cacao, but different too, much stronger, less controlled. He hadn't felt anything like **this** before, not directed towards him; well, there had been Chocolat but she also gave off an air of irritation with him, but Lloyd... there was nothing but positivity there. There was also a hint of something else mixed in, hiding under those emotions, that he couldn't pin down but made him shiver. Lloyd had no idea what he was doing with that simple touch, but it seemed like he was a natural at projecting emotions, if a little wild with them.

He closed his eyes, drinking them in, and it seemed like the _feel_ of Palmacosta had just vanished, leaving him at peace with the city for the first time since stepping foot into the plaza that day the imposters ran into them. Adam didn't know how long he stood like that, and opened his eyes only when he heard Kratos cough discreetly to catch their attentions. He jerked away from Lloyd, startled and blushing harder while Genis and Colette just giggled at him.

"If everyone is ready, we should get going to the House of Salvation for the statue." the Seraph declared, eyeing him with a dangerous glint in his gaze. Adam shrank back a bit, Lloyd turning to make some verbal jab at Kratos as the group started walking towards the city gate together.

"That's some weird hug." Genis remarked, arms swinging by his sides while he walked by Raine. He tilted his head, smirking up at Adam with a teasing grin. "But you looked like you _reeeeally_ liked it."

Adam blanched at the implication he could just about see in the boy's eyes, lifting his shoulders in a pathetic attempt to hide from it. "W-well, I...! I wouldn't...!" he stammered helplessly. How could he possibly explain that he enjoyed the emotions being shared, not the _actual_ contact... or **who** it was that was sharing the emotions to begin with for that matter? "Th-that is, I...!"

"You had a nice smile, Adam!" Colette added in unhelpfully, beaming at him as she walked backwards beside Kratos, her hands held together behind her back. She giggled. "You were so cute! It looked like you were really happy to get that hug from Lloyd!" she went on.

"I was **not**." Adam muttered under his breath in protest, and mentally hated himself for knowing that it was only a partial lie. This journey was just getting harder and harder to deal with as they went on... and they hadn't even gotten to the second Seal yet!

* * *

"Can we-?"

"For the last time, Lloyd, **no**. We are not going to deviate from our journey simply to satiate your need for revenge on an entire human ranch." Kratos stated flatly, an irritated tone coloring his words. For the past day and a half, Lloyd had pestered anyone who would care to listen, demanding first that they go straight to Magnius's ranch and destroy it, then begging for them to go so he could at least find the man and stab him in the kneecaps.

Genis told him to shut up and bother Raine, Raine told him he was straying close to insanity and if he brought it up again she would assign extra homework, Colette just smiled helplessly at him and thought maybe asking Kratos would be a better idea, and one stern gaze from Kratos drove Lloyd to pester Adam instead. At first, the mercenary thought he'd get some relief -Lloyd seemed to find endless amusement in making the Wonder Chef annoyed with physical contact- and for a while this was true.

Relief only lasted twenty minutes.

"**No!** Lloyd, you caught me by surprise one time! **One** time! _Per l'amore della mia sanità mentale...!_" Adam's voice carried over them all from his place at the back of the group, growing louder with indignation and frustration, "I'd rather deep-fry bacon-wrapped butter sticks than do **that** again! _Get __**away**__ from me before I serve you tomato soup for dinner!_"

Which chased Lloyd away from the Wonder Chef faster than any boy should be capable of moving. Kratos didn't blame him; he shuddered at the thought of being served a dish like that. But that meant there was now no one else to pester but him, and Lloyd took to him like an eager puppy.

Part of him relished the attention he was getting from his son; the rest wouldn't have minded shoving his head into the nearest tree hollow just to get some peace and quiet.

The brunet sighed, looking bored and frustrated that he didn't get his way, then slipped into a pensive state again, frowning slightly as his gaze went to the road instead of the horizon. Kratos noticed this out of the corner of his eye. Was he still considering the conversation they had with the group back in Palmacosta, after they left the Wonder Chef with Cacao? Did he still wonder if he'd made a mistake in jumping to Palmacosta's defense against the Desians?

To be honest, Kratos had mixed feelings on that incident. He wasn't even sure if he could separate them out and truly analyze them, it all seemed to blur together in his mind. One fact still remained clear in his mind; Palmacosta was dangerous. Something was going on with the city that didn't sit well with him, what with the Governor-General creating a militia, his wife's mysterious death by illness and the fact that the Desians didn't seem too concerned with a possible raising of an army against them. He didn't want Lloyd and the Chosen to get involved, not when underhanded movements could cause harm to them both, and getting the group out of Palmacosta quickly made him feel only slightly less anxious.

"I wonder why... Adam doesn't like being touched..." Lloyd finally mused, breaking into Kratos's own thoughts, "He's okay with certain ones, like that weird forehead-touching thing he did with Cacao, and Colette can hold his hand for a couple of minutes before he gets all twitchy." He folded his arms over his chest and twisted his mouth in frustration. "I don't get it. And I don't get why he only gets mad at **me** for it!" He looked up at Kratos with a plaintive expression on his face that made him cringe internally. "I mean, he liked it when I did what Cacao did in Palmacosta! You saw him smiling, right?" Lloyd demanded of him, sounding almost desperate, "So why won't he let me do it again? He was looking a little sad and I thought it'd cheer him up and he just chases me off!"

Kratos scowled a little, reminded of that stunt he pulled in Palmacosta. His son and the chef had been a little _too_ close for comfort -he didn't need to have to do The Talk with Lloyd right now, with Desians everywhere and Cruxis hovering over his head- and the last thing he needed to further complicate this entire journey would be to have Lloyd register and realize what expression he had on his face when he bumped foreheads with Adam. The mercenary just knew nothing good would come of it, not with the fate the chef was driving towards if Kratos didn't plan his actions carefully.

"He told you several times before, did he not?" he finally told Lloyd gruffly, "Leave him be and focus instead on how you can better your sword skills for our next training session." Lloyd grunted in response, but whether that was for agreement or disdain even Kratos had no way to tell.

"Actually... I've been thinking about those imposters." he remarked and glared heavenward as he folded his hands behind his head, "Those fakes are totally copying us, did you notice?" Kratos thought back quickly, bringing the faces and figures of the imposters to mind for examination.

"Hm, now that you mention it, they **did** meet some of the qualifications for our group." Raine agreed lightly, coming into the conversation with her insights. Kratos looked back over his shoulder to see her grin. "That would make their ignoble leader Lloyd's imposter, as we've been seen with him walking at the lead." Genis burst into laughter as Lloyd's face colored with embarrassment and disdain. Kratos hid his own smile by facing forward again, disguising a brief laugh as a huff.

"Yeah, he's just like Lloyd!" the boy declared enthusiastically. Raine hummed thoughtfully.

"That would mean that Carlotta woman would be Colette, and the magic-user would be posing as me." she went on and Kratos could just feel that last question hanging over them. He had to admit, he felt just a tiny bit bad for the obvious victim of the last impersonator.

"Oh... so then that one who looks like a big ape is..." Genis muttered with a tone of dread coloring his voice.

"Oooh! Is it Genis?" Colette chimed in brightly. Lloyd got his last laugh as Genis sputtered incoherently for a few moments. Kratos silently reveled in the sound; his son's laughter was just as he remembered it when he was a tiny boy, boisterous and unrestrained.

"N-no! I was gonna say it was Kratos!" Genis finally declared and the mercenary halted in his tracks, turning to stare incredulously at the boy. Really? Did he honestly believe that that vacant-eyed excuse for a human being could possibly pull off an impersonation of himself? Beside him, Lloyd laughed even harder, to the point of gasping for air... and impossibly enough Adam was laughing with him, hugging himself tight and turning away from the group to hide it but everyone could tell from the shaking of his shoulders and the escaping sounds that he hadn't quite strangled down.

Honestly, he sometimes felt like he was the only true adult in the group.

They continued onward after that and Kratos was relieved to have that behind them. Let them think what they wanted of the imposters, it mattered not to him. They knew where the Book of Regeneration was, he knew where the Seals already were, so there was no point continuing the discussion.

.

"I still think the guy is posing as Genis." Lloyd remarked suddenly, several hours after the fact. Kratos just gave him a puzzled look, eyebrow lifting at the odd choice of conversation. The party had made camp for the night, a cooking fire set up that Raine had decided to commandeer to make supper, and both Genis and Adam were desperately trying to talk her out of it. Kratos himself was helping set up tents for the Chosen and the Sage siblings, leaving Lloyd to take care of unrolling sleeping bags for the rest of them.

"And what brought up this again?" he asked his son, half-curious and half humoring the boy. The brunet rolled out the last bag and stood, dusting off his knees before straightening, hands on his hips as he considered it.

"Well, if me and Genis and Colette and Professor Sage each have an imposter, then why didn't they have one for you and Adam?" Lloyd questioned, and Kratos found himself surprised that it sounded like he really gave it serious thought, "If they knew enough to make my imposter the leader, and had seen us enough times somehow to do that, then why didn't they also copy Adam or you? Why didn't they think to add you guys?"

Kratos didn't need to consider it any further. If the way they acted in taking the Book of Regeneration and Adam's engagement ring was any indicator, the imposters were out there swindling the masses for money and valuables. Four people would be enough to carry the illusion of a Chosen and her guards, and it would mean the loot could be divided with greater portions for each member. It was all for the sake of greed.

Lloyd huffed after a moment longer that Kratos didn't answer and went to continue working on some small project he'd been obsessing with for some time now. The mercenary wondered if perhaps his son was trying to aim for a specific answer, or was trying to pin down an idea that was too complex for him alone and so sought his help in finding it.

Then he dismissed the thought. That in itself would have been too complicated for Lloyd to have considered. And Kratos sighed in dismay that it was a fact he had to accept about the brunet.

* * *

The House of Salvation was a simple building just a little way off the main road, built using church donations and volunteer labor. Raine smiled up at it before turning to take in the condition of the group following her with a faint scowl. Out of them all, only Colette had eaten anything and not complained about her cooking. Genis still kept grimacing, Kratos held a hand over his mouth to hide a similar grimace but he wasn't fooling her one bit. Lloyd looked like he regretted even getting up that morning, and Adam...

The Wonder Chef **had** to be over-reacting. Such dramatics over a simple and innovative dish like lemon omelets; the meal couldn't possibly justify him running into the bushes at first bite and then coming back to faint at the very smell of another serving. He just had to get used to it, that's all. Her cooking was an acquired taste, yes.

Right now he was clutching the bags with the ingredients and watching her like a hawk, determined to protect his pack and their rations of food.

"Well, we finally made it." Genis groaned, holding his stomach, "Can we _please_ ask first if they have a bathroom before we bug them about the Spiritua Statue?"

"Fine." Raine sighed in exasperation and blinked as he, Lloyd and even Kratos bolted for the doors of the House, leaving her to stand outside in the wake with Colette and Adam. She facepalmed, then looked over at the blonde chef in irritation. "And don't **you** plan on fighting for a chance at evacuation?" she griped.

"Of course not. I am the Wonder Chef; creating an antidote meal to your... creation... was simple enough to do." he explained with a proud smile as Colette giggled behind her hands, "Unfortunately, I am now out of parsley and potatoes."

"I guess we'll just have to wait until they come back." the Chosen remarked, walking forward to seat herself on a bench just outside the House of Salvation, "It wouldn't be right to go ahead without them." Raine couldn't argue with that; anything Colette wanted, she would indulge in. It was only fair, knowing what lay for her at the end of the journey. She went over to sit by her, pulling out one of her books to look over her notes, fresh writing taking up a few new pages after what happened in Palmacosta.

It had been far too easy to restore the Wonder Chef's mana; it shouldn't have been, Raine knew, since he didn't have an Exsphere. Yet his body readily absorbed the mana she transferred with no resistance. It puzzled her greatly. She tried to sense the kind of blood that flowed through him, and met with another mystery.

She _couldn't_ sense it.

Raine was more adept at detecting the differences in races than Genis, could feel out the subtleties between humans and half-elves more easily than her brother. But something was masking the Wonder Chef's mana, blocking her from knowing what he truly was. He couldn't use magic, indicating human. But he could dispel magic, like anyone with a high amount of elven blood could do, whether pure elf or half.

"Tch. I should have checked his ears." she muttered under her breath as she scratched in her musings on a fresh page.

"Checked whose ears, Professor Sage?" Colette asked curiously, her head tilting as she looked up at the teacher. Raine turned to her in surprise -how did she hear that? She was certain it was just a whisper under her breath- and the little blonde waited patiently for an answer, a smile on her face.

"Oh, it's nothing, Colette." she finally returned, if a little uncertainly.

Eventually the other half of the party returned, and Raine had to go and pull Adam away from a nearby merchant by the cape after the chef was duped into buying a fake traveler's charm just because the man spun a wild story about it that had entranced the boy. Honestly, how could someone as bright as Adam obviously was be so easily manipulated like that?

_'Well, he must have lived a sheltered life, considering he has no clue that a guard and circlet are both women's armor and he has aversions to physical contact.'_

She reached the group just as a lightly armored man approached them on horseback. Eyebrows furrowing in confusion, Raine waited to hear what would come of this new development.

"Chosen One! Everyone!" the man greeted breathlessly, "I need to speak with you!" Colette stepped forward, concern on her face. Raine had a sinking feeling in her stomach, a suspicion that something was very wrong. It had been worrying her since she learned of Palmacosta's militia, and her distrust of the city had grown when a citizen told them that the milita was away when Magnius invaded that day. Would this be the next bit of proof to her theory of what was really happening?

"What is it? What's wrong?" the fledgling angel asked of the messenger.

"I have a message from Dorr." he told her, catching his breath at last and recomposing himself, "He would like you to temporarily cease the journey of regeneration." The group was taken aback by the request, Colette gasping in confusion.

"Any chance we could make that permanent?" Adam growled softly, slipping the charm he bought into one of the pockets on his travel pack. Raine gave him a stern look, which he just shrugged off, glancing back at her askance in a manner that made her wonder again what exactly he was hoping to gain in traveling with them.

"What is this about? The request he is making... does the Governor-General not realize hampering us puts the world at risk?" Kratos demanded in that cold tone of his, stepping forward and shifting so his sword was in clear view. The messenger gulped, lifting his hands abruptly to show he was unarmed.

"Don't kill the messenger for the bad news!" he exclaimed shakily, "I'm just delivering it! You can ignore it after that, just lemme finish!" While Lloyd turned to start an argument with the mercenary, Colette prompted the man to continue. "A Church of Martel pilgrimage guide has been kidnapped by the Desians." he told them, alarming the group once again, "In light of this, Dorr has decided that the time has come to launch a full assault on the human ranch controlled by Magnius. Palmacosta's forces are assembling as we speak."

"That still doesn't tell us why you want us to stop our journey." Genis pointed out dryly, his hands going to his hips. Raine had her suspicions on why, but she was willing to suspend it until they got all the information they could from the messenger.

"The Governor-General heard of what you had done in Palmacosta while we were away training, and he would like you to rescue the kidnapped tour guide in concert with our attack." the man explained and then grinned, "I guess he was impressed with how you guys fight; if anyone could save that guide, it'd be you."

Raine's eyes flickered towards Kratos, their gazes meeting. It was a mutual understanding that came between them -which surprised her- but it was there all the same. There was something highly suspicious going on. Why would Desians kidnap a single tour guide? And why now after they'd left the city and the militia had gone back? And why would a single guide going missing prompt a sudden decision for a full scale assault?

"Who is this kidnapped tour guide?" Colette asked in concern, her eyes wide while Lloyd rested a hand on her shoulder comfortingly. The messenger scratched at his head, eyes squinting as he tried to recall the name.

"Her name... ah, yeah, it's the funny one. Chocolat, that's her." he finally said and blinked at the shocked cries from the party.

"Chocolat?" Lloyd exclaimed, as if he wasn't sure he heard right. Beside Raine, Adam echoed the name with greater panic; she glanced aside to see him paling, almost wilting in place. The name just confirmed what she suspected; Dorr wasn't really rebelling against the Desians, just creating a false sense of security for the city and then turning over anyone who was truly plotting against the Desians. Chocolat was caught up because her mother had been saved by the Chosen; the poor girl was now bait the Desians were sending out via Dorr to get to her. But why? Why go through all this when it would be easier to just ambush them on the road with their superior numbers?

"Lloyd! Let's help them!" Colette suddenly blurted out, turning to look up at the brunet. Raine lifted her head and watched them with a frown. It was obvious; she would never willingly turn away a request for help and she immediately turned to her greatest support for reassurance. What surprised her was the second plea.

"Please, Lloyd, we have to rescue her!" Adam cried, hurrying to join Colette in giving Lloyd imploring looks. The brunet just looked between them, brows furrowed together uncertainly as he rubbed a finger around his Exsphere mount. Raine lifted an eyebrow at that. He seemed to do that at the oddest times. Lloyd swallowed, looking over at Kratos first, then back at herself, his expression one of questioning.

"We shouldn't get involved." she warned him, "The journey comes first." Adam gave her a faintly betrayed look, then reached out blindingly fast and grabbed one of Lloyd's hands in his own, snapping the brunet's attention back to him.

She didn't miss the appearance of a faint blush on Lloyd's cheeks as he turned to stare at the chef.

"Lloyd, Cacao is like family to me." Adam begged softly, "She's the closest I have to a mother, and Chocolat is all she has left of her own family. We **have** to save her."

Raine could see it coming, and she cringed just a little. The slow shifting of Lloyd's puzzled expression as it grew more determined, that sharpness of his gaze that came out when he caught wind of some injustice happening. He looked between the pleading chef and the imploring Chosen, and nodded. Raine just sighed in dismay. "Yeah, okay, we're going to help them, Colette." the brunet decided firmly, "Don't worry, Adam; we'll save Chocolat. Those Desians don't stand a chance!"

"...Somehow, I thought you were going to say that." Raine muttered with a shake of her head. He turned to frown at her disapprovingly.

"Of course! We can't just leave her; you heard what Adam said!" he protested, "Cacao's like his mom, so that makes Chocolat like his sister, and we gotta bring a family back together!" He gave her a pathetic expression. "Dad was too late to save **my** mom, so I gotta do this for Cacao and Adam." he added lamely. The messenger seemed to take his words as acceptance by the whole group.

"Thank you!" he exclaimed in relief and joy. He dug into his own pack and pulled out a rolled up parchment that he then handed over to Lloyd, "Neil will inform you of the details once you reach the ranch. This map will lead you there. I need to get back to Palmacosta and join up with the main forces, but good luck to all of you!"

And with that, the man spun his horse around and galloped off down the main road again. Raine wondered if the headache she was getting was from the sound of hooves pounding the earth or from the knowledge that trying to talk Lloyd out of this new insanity would just be a futile effort.

* * *

A/N: And I've come into a roadblock at this point. Which character should start the next part?


	15. Neil's Confession

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

They spent the night at the House of Salvation before making their way back to the main road and traveled down it back towards Palmacosta. A few miles down, Raine opened the parchment and directed the group onto a hidden path, one that would lead through open plains, past several hills and through a small forest. It was there that they would find the Palmacosta human ranch.

Kratos Aurion took pride that he had honed his control over his emotions enough to keep them from distracting him in battle. Fear did not grip him as it had so very long ago, when he was young and fully mortal and held a sword in his hands for the first time against another living being. He would admit that the last time he felt the chill of fear was that night Anna and Lloyd were swept away by cruel fate. Even when he discovered Anna's grave at that dwarf's home and heard the young man called Lloyd claim her as his mother Kratos kept that spike of fear from showing on his face, from affecting him beyond his order that he be left behind in Iselia, never mind that he had initially given that order because he just had a weak-, _bias_... towards boys named Lloyd.

That was the story and he was sticking to it, damn it.

But now, with Lloyd bound and determined to march them all straight to a Desian facility -which was _exactly_ what Kratos did **not** want to happen at all for many, many reasons-, the Seraph was fairly certain he wasn't just feeling fear; he was on the brink of panic.

On the one hand, it was a perfect 'coincidental' distraction that would buy him more time to train Lloyd. On the other, in a few days' time, that boy would be racing through the halls of a human ranch, where he'd be recorded, analyzed, identified, reported on, and then all hell would come down on both their heads.

Kratos spared a cursory glance towards Adam, the Wonder Chef looking a little uncomfortable while Colette held his hand loosely, smiling up at him and remarking how well he was doing. Ah, yes, he had to worry about hell coming down on _his_ head, too, didn't he?

.

He trained them harder in the evening, while the Chosen and the Sage siblings sat around the campfire. Kratos turned a deaf ear to any complaints both Lloyd and Adam had about the spike in difficulty. If his son was going to be stupid enough to drag them all into a human ranch, then he should be prepared to keep himself alive and quite probably his obsession too.

"I don't have the constitution for this." Adam panted, sprawled on his back and resting after the most recent sparring practice. Lloyd laughed tiredly, rubbing his head as he sat beside the blonde.

"This would probably be easier for you if you had an Exsphere. I could probably get one from a Desian once we attack the ranch." he offered and blinked when Adam lifted himself up and let out a long sigh.

"I don't want one." he finally remarked quietly, "My own power should be enough. I just need to train harder in cooking." Kratos stood nearby listening to the conversation before huffing and stepping forward to stand before them.

"If you have the strength to chat, you have the strength to train. Get up." he told them both, letting the twin groans of dismay roll off his back.

He contemplated telling Adam that the intensified training was Lloyd's fault and letting the two spar that way. If nothing else, it would provide him with some amusement, the sight of the Wonder Chef chasing the dual swordsman around again.

.

The Palmacosta Human Ranch loomed high above the tops of trees in the forest, and the group found themselves carefully moving among the foliage to keep out of sight. They left the secret road once they were close enough and began the search for the rendezvous with the Palmacosta army. The closer they drew to the marked spot on the map for the meet-up, the more wary Kratos became. He knew what this was, and yet he couldn't bring up the subject of what it was without getting either suspicious looks or a loud argument from Lloyd. On top of that, Adam was looking paler and paler the closer they got to the ranch itself, and though he hid it well from the others Kratos was able to hear the labored breaths he took as quietly as possible.

From the way the Chosen looked often in his direction in worry, it seemed apparent that she could hear it as well.

A shift in the air. Kratos wrapped his hand around his sword, sliding into a neutral stance as a figure emerged from the shadows.

"Chosen One, please wait." a young man with short dark hair called softly to them as he approached, his hands up to show he was unarmed. Kratos gave a short nod of acknowledgment as he eased back out of his stance. Lloyd uttered a soft cry of surprise at recognizing him.

"Neil!" the brunet exclaimed, hurrying forward to meet the man, "We heard Chocolat was kidnapped, so we're here to help!" The Assistant Governor-General looked uncomfortable and guilt painted his face. Kratos frowned; he looked like he was going to break under the weight of the ruse. Ah, was he going to reveal everything then?

"...Yes. I wish to speak with you regarding that." Neil returned and looked at each member of the party before gesturing to another direction. "Please, come this way..." he whispered and led them to a small clearing further away from the original intended meeting spot.

"It doesn't sound like you have very good news for us." Raine remarked almost offhandedly, her eyes calculating, waiting for a reaction to her words. Kratos had to hand it to her, she was clever. Neil flinched slightly as they walked and the Seraph knew that this was not going to go over well.

* * *

Once they were safely hidden in a covered clearing, shielded from prying eyes by tight groups of trees and large bushes, Neil turned to face the group. "I would like you all to just go ahead and leave the Palmacosta region." he told them firmly, "Before anything else happens. It will be best to just go now."

"What?" Lloyd couldn't believe his ears. Abandon Palmacosta? While they were about to finally have it out with the Desians?!

"But if we do that, what will happen to Chocolat?" Colette asked worriedly, "I don't understand..." Genis nodded eagerly.

"Yeah! We're supposed to work in conjunction with the Palmacosta army to rescue her!" he pointed out, then faltered uncertainly at the way Neil avoided all their gazes, "Right? That's... what we're here for, right?"

"No, that's..." Neil trailed off, looking like he didn't want to say much more. Lloyd tilted his head, unsure of what was going on. Had the plan changed and he didn't like it?

"So..." Kratos remarked in that cold, even tone that Lloyd was quickly growing to hate hearing, "It **is** a trap." The brunet stiffened in shock and alarm at hearing those words, turning to look at mercenary first, then back to Neil, who just stared at him in shock.

_'No way. A trap? What's the trap?'_ He couldn't understand it. What was a trap? The plan to rescue Chocolat? Were they going to trap the Desians to save her?

"Of the several possibilities, it looks like the worst one came true." Professor Sage agreed, using that tone of voice that meant she had you all figured out and you were just a little bug she was going to crush. Lloyd **hated** that tone too. What was it with those two having such shiver-causing tones of voices?!

And what the hell was going on?!

"Kratos, Professor, what are you talking about?" he demanded of them quietly. He didn't like not knowing what was happening, especially this close to a human ranch. Kratos turned his gaze towards him, and for a moment Lloyd thought he saw a flicker of sympathy. But he blinked and it wasn't there anymore, so the brunet figured he was just seeing things.

"It was a mystery that the Desians would simply leave a city with an army alone." the rust-haired swordsman explained shortly, "Although, if you look at it from the perspective of a politician desperate to keep his city populated at all, the ruse becomes that much more obvious." The Professor nodded and Lloyd directed his attention to her, still puzzled.

"Yes, exactly." the teacher agreed evenly, "Choosing not to crush the seeds of rebellion must mean they are not of any true threat to the Desians. They are left alone simply because they have no real power..." She trailed off, eyes widening, then narrowing as she folded her arms over her chest, glaring at Neil again. "Or perhaps, because they are in fact _beneficial_ to the Desians."

Neil stared at her, body trembling, for a long minute. Then he closed his eyes and sighed in resignation, hanging his head. "It is as you say." he finally returned, "Dorr is working with the Desians to lead the Chosen into a trap."

Lloyd froze in place, unable to really wrap his head around that confession. He dimly heard Colette and Genis gasp in shock, but he was busy just trying to figure out why that seemingly brave man would do this to them? To the one who was going to save the world?

"Wh-why would he **do** such a thing?" Genis cried, his voice sounding so shaky and full of hurt. Neil held up his hands as though to ward off tears and protests.

"He... he didn't used to be like this!" he exclaimed defensively, "He always thought of the well-being of the people of the city!" He gestured in Palmacosta's general direction, "Even five years ago, when he lost his wife, Clara, he swore to fight against the Desians!" Colette shook her head, still confused by the conflicting stories.

"Then, why...?" she began to mumble, eyes wide and teary. Neil held his head in his hands, stress making his face look more haggard than last Lloyd had seen him.

"I don't know. I really don't. Believe me, if I knew, I would confront him openly about this deception." he sighed, "At any rate, entering the ranch now will put the Chosen in danger." He pulled his hands down and gave Professor Sage a determined look that he then passed on to Kratos. "Leave Chocolat's rescue to me and _please_, go on your way. Regenerate the world as soon as possible, so that all of this can finally end."

"It is as I have said before." Kratos agreed, already shifting to turn and leave, "It would be best to abandon the situation here in favor of world regeneration." But before he could go anywhere, Colette yelled out an emphatic 'No!' that had Lloyd jump in place.

Oh, great, now his Exsphere mount was making his hand itch again...

* * *

"No! I can't just ignore this!" Colette cried, and she felt a little thrill at sounding so defiant, so spontaneous. So _free-willed_. "Right now they have Chocolat to try to get me, but if I don't show up, then they might attack the city!" Genis nodded eagerly, little head bobbing up and down like an eager puppy wanting to please its master.

"Colette's right! If we leave things as they are now, Palmacosta may be destroyed just like Iselia." he pointed out to his sister and Kratos. Colette was glad for his agreement and looked to Lloyd and Adam for extra support as well. Lloyd was watching Professor Sage and Kratos almost distantly, his finger rubbing around his Exsphere mount again. Occasionally, he glanced her way too. It made her wonder what was going on in his mind during those times he was like that.

Well, Lloyd wasn't speaking up, so she turned her attention to Adam, who had been strangely silent the entire time. Her eyes widened as she caught on to why that was. The chef looked very pale, eyes squeezed shut and looking like it took all his focus just to stay standing. He was breathing long, slow breaths, like Professor Sage would sometimes do when she was really upset and needed to calm down.

"You think so, too, don't you, Lloyd?!" Genis demanded, pulling Lloyd's attention back to their situation and Colette back to them as well. She wasn't sure if she should tell them that Adam didn't look so good, but a glance back at him showed her the chef had opened his one visible eye and focused on her, finger lifting to his lips and shaking his head. So he didn't want her to tell on him? But, why?

"Yes, what you say is true, Genis." Professor Sage relented, holding up a hand to halt any further exclamation from her brother, "The possibility of Palmacosta being attacked in retaliation is admittedly high. But I still wish to side with Kratos." She gave him and Lloyd stern looks, "If you don't want to see cities destroyed, you should avoid contact with the Desians. There's nothing we can do to reverse the damage done here, so it's best to just leave now while we have the chance."

Colette couldn't believe what she was hearing. This went against the teachings that told her to be of help to all those less fortunate, for in aiding others, the journey to salvation can be made by all who place life and faith in the Goddess Martel and her eternal kindness.

"No, that's not right." she spoke up, religious righteousness fueling her words, "Regenerating the world and saving the people in front of us are **not** exclusive of each other! What would be the point of saving the world if there are no longer people living there?! ...That's what I think." She trailed back down to her more demure tone, blushing furiously over how bold she must have sounded, how daring. So very un-Chosen-like. The Professor simply held her gaze for a moment before sighing, gesturing towards her.

"If that is how you feel, Colette, then we do not have any right to stop you." she relented, "The only one who has the right to make decisions on this journey is you, the Chosen One. We will follow where you command us." She looked towards Lloyd and Colette followed her gaze, noticing that Adam had turned away just enough to hide the paleness of his face, one hand now covering his mouth and nose. "Is that all right with you, Lloyd? Adam?"

"That was my intention from the beginning." Lloyd finally remarked grimly as the Wonder Chef merely nodded once, "Remember what I said?" Colette shivered as Lloyd's voice turned icy, "I'm going to destroy them _all_." Oh, why couldn't she be as bold and sure of herself as Lloyd was in himself? She would be a much better Chosen if she had a stronger will, right?

"Still..." Neil murmured uncertainly, watching the group discussion with some amount of wariness, "The trap..." Genis turned and waved him off with a grin.

"It's all right. Colette is saying this is what she wants!" he declared brightly and Colette found herself wishing he had just kept quiet because she could say that herself. ...No, she couldn't. She didn't have the courage to do that, and she scolded herself mentally for wishing Genis would stay out of things. She should be glad her friends could voice the things she could only dare dream of saying in her most sinful of thoughts.

"Now, then," Professor Sage sighed again, that kind of sigh that marked the beginning of a lesson, one hand curling delicately against her chin as she thought things over, "there are two courses we can take. The first one, obviously, is to go on ahead and infiltrate the ranch to rescue Chocolat and the other captives." She frowned lightly. "Now that things have come to this, if we leave the ranch alone, it will surely result in a second Iselia." she added. Colette glanced over at Lloyd and Genis, feeling her heart want to reach out to them when she caught a glimpse of their guilty flinches.

"Our second option is to confirm Dorr's true motives. Conflicting information is no good to us." the teacher went on, watching the boys as well as her. Colette swallowed nervously. "If he **has** planned a trap, then he knows the layout of the ranch well. Getting that information from him will help us better plan a rescue. So... let's have him _talk_ for a bit." she finished, her gaze turning sharp and dangerous. Neil picked up on the tone of her words, flinching alongside Colette, Lloyd and Genis.

"Wh-what are you going to do to Dorr?" he asked hesitantly.

"You'd better not ask that. Raine's punishment is _painful_." Genis told him wryly, and earned a slap from his sister as a reward for his quip. "Ow! See?!" he whimpered, holding his head. Colette hid a little giggle behind her hand and the smaller boy gave her a little grin. Even though she knew she should feel bad that he got smacked, sometimes Colette wondered if he provoked his sister on purpose just to get a smile out of her.

"Thinking logically, dealing with Dorr first is the correct choice." Kratos declared, folding his arms over his chest as he turned his gaze onto her. Colette's mind blanked as she began panicking over the sudden weight of leadership put on her shoulders. She wasn't good at dealing with things like this. It was easier to let Lloyd pick everything because he was a year older and didn't seem to mind having to choose things like what games to play or where to go exploring.

"Um, uh, what do you think, Lloyd?" she blurted out, turning to the brunet to help her. She ignored how the Professor and Kratos both scowled a little at her obvious decision to leave it in his hands.

For his part, Lloyd just stood there, fingertip circling around his Exsphere mount as usual while he looked over everyone around him. His eyes settled on Adam longest, Colette noticed, and his gaze sharpened before turning away to focus on his Exsphere. His lips moved, wording something out to himself, but even with her strangely sharp hearing, she couldn't hear what he was saying. Maybe all he was doing was mouthing words that he spoke in his head?

After a moment, Lloyd lifted his gaze, a determined look on his face. "Let's return to Palmacosta." he decided, startling her with his decision, "We'll hear what Dorr has to say first."

* * *

"Yeah." Genis agreed halfheartedly, looking about as disappointed as Colette. Adam couldn't believe what he was hearing. Go back to Palmacosta? Now? When they were so close to Chocolat?!

"What do you mean 'go back'?!" he blurted out to Lloyd, the brunet staring back at him in shock, "We can't leave Chocolat here! We **have** to rescue her!" Angered by the choice Lloyd made, Adam turned and began storming in the direction of the ranch, intent on going in himself.

"Don't!" Lloyd hissed out, reaching out to grab him by the arm and pull him back. The blonde struggled to get free, growling in irritation. "Adam, don't be stupid! If you run in there like that, you'll just get yourself killed!" he added, stumbling back as Adam twisted himself out of the brunet's grip. He turned to stomp off again, pausing when Colette stood before him, bouncing in place on her heels.

"I know it's hard, but if Lloyd says we should go back, then we should." she told him in her sweet yet determined voice, projecting a calming feeling that Adam couldn't help but cool down in response to, "We'll save Chocolat as soon as we can, I promise. I'm sure she's scared and lonely by herself."

"My, even Lloyd makes rational decisions sometimes." Professor Sage commented in mild surprise, her eyebrows raised and approval pouring from her that just riled Adam up again. Kratos nodded in agreement and the chef turned a glare on him before the taint _-pain anger hatred fear death so much death-_ in the air pressed down on him again and he turned his head aside to try steadying himself before anyone else caught on that he wasn't feeling well enough to attack on his own.

Which he still wanted to do...

"Um, what should I-?" Neil began uncertainly as the group mobilized to return to Palmacosta.

"You should stay here." Adam heard Lloyd tell the older man in a sheepish tone, "We're going to put the squeeze on your commander... and it's probably better you don't see that."

"Please watch over the status of the ranch. It's very important for our friend that we rescue Chocolat as quickly as possible." Colette added and the chef turned to look at her surprise. She smiled encouragingly at him and he managed a small one in return as thanks.

Neil nodded and agreed, retreating into hiding as they moved away from the hidden ranch and the forest as swiftly and quietly as they could.

.

Once on the road to Palmacosta again, Adam ignored every attempt made by Lloyd to apologize or explain himself. He was still too irritated by the choice to abandon Chocolat and the drain on his mental strength from being so close to a human ranch for so long wasn't helping. Why were they going back to talk to the man that got Chocolat into this danger? What was the point of it?

Okay, so information that could be used to break into the ranch more easily might be a result, but that still didn't justify Lloyd just choosing to go back so quickly! He glared at the back of Lloyd's head as the brunet walked beside Kratos, narrowing his eyes further when the other boy turned his head to look back at him uncertainly.

_'Now __**you**__ know how it feels! Idiot.'_

* * *

Lloyd didn't like being stared at, or glared at, or whatever it was Adam was doing that was making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. It made him uncomfortable and the last thing he needed was more reasons to guilt trip over his choice. He felt bad enough as it is.

But he'd weighed his options and decided that he didn't understand what was going on. He didn't know why Dorr would betray the city and Colette and all the people who trusted him, and he knew that it would just bother him the whole time they were in the ranch. And if Lloyd didn't keep his head together while fending off Desians, well... Kratos getting on his case about not learning anything from his lessons would be the least of his problems.

So since he didn't know what Dorr was thinking, it'd be best to just go and ask the guy what he was doing. Then maybe Lloyd could figure out what the hell was going on with Palmacosta and the fight against the Desians.

.

They made camp by the road the night before they would reach Palmacosta. Lloyd tried again to reach out to the Wonder Chef, but Adam just glared at him with hard blue eyes until he backed away. It kind of hurt to get that reaction. _'And I thought we were getting to be friends, too. How can I get him to stop being mad at me?'_

He sat at his sleeping space -and he noticed that Adam had been taking care to set up his own space as far from him as possible- and continued working on Colette's necklace. He had to make it better than his first try, sturdier, prettier. She deserved the best.

That and it kept him from having to worry about that stupid monster list thing. He kept his attention on his work up until he spotted a flash of purple and white out of the corner of his eyes. Kratos's boots. Lloyd barely held in the groan of exasperation that wanted to come out and simply set the necklace aside to get up and see what the mercenary wanted.

That seemed to be what Kratos wanted, as he then turned and began walking a short distance from the campsite, probably expecting Lloyd to follow him like a puppy. He sighed and did just that, wondering what Kratos was going to say to bring down his mood even more.

"Lloyd." the mercenary murmured in his usual even and aloof-sounding tone of voice, "What do you hope to accomplish by questioning Dorr?"

Lloyd blinked, looking up at the man who seemed to study him intently for his answer. Really? **That** was what Kratos wanted to talk about? Wasn't it his and Raine's idea to go and talk to Dorr in the first place? Why ask **him** about it; they should just be glad he decided to follow their plan!

But then he recalled his own thoughts from earlier, his own concerns and doubts, and they were renewed in his mind. "I... I don't know." Lloyd sighed, one hand lifting to his head as the questions spun around him, "But we can't just do nothing while he's betraying everyone's trust. We don't know the real story behind it all. We **won't** know anything unless we go see him and hear what he has to say." He looked back up at Kratos, gesturing towards him in hopes that he could somehow get across the jumbled thoughts in his head, "A man like Dorr, with a daughter and a lost wife, must have _some_ reason for doing all that he did!"

Kratos just stared at him in silence, looking him over as if trying to read him like a book. Did Lloyd even make sense to him? Hell, Lloyd sometimes didn't make sense to himself; he just followed what his heart told him and the hell with everything else. But after a long while, Kratos finally nodded his head once, a short and brief dip of his head.

"I see." he murmured, "Then we will leave before dawn tomorrow, so that we may hurry to Palmacosta."

Part of Lloyd was annoyed with having to get up so early, but part felt relieved that he was actually taken seriously by Kratos. It made him feel oddly proud of himself, and he returned Kratos's curt nod with one of his own.

"Yeah, okay. I'll tell the others to bed down early." Lloyd agreed and began walking back to camp. He thought he heard Kratos mutter something more, but by then he spotted Genis poking Adam until the chef retreated into the safety of his cape-blanket, peering out like a cat in a hollowed log, and the sight made him forget to ask Kratos what he'd said.

Oh well, probably wasn't important. Just some last minute snipe or something; Kratos can be so weird.


	16. Confrontation with Dorr

Tales of Symphonia:

Wonder Edition

.

.

Walking into Palmacosta, Colette first heard Lloyd declare his intent to get some answers out of Governor-General Dorr -and she wondered, not for the first time, why he liked to repeat things like that; maybe it was fun?-. The second thing she heard was buried under Lloyd's voice, hidden so no one else seemed to hear it but her; the sound of Adam gasping in sharp pain, like he'd just been hit really badly.

She turned, alarmed, in time to see the Wonder Chef flinch heavily, one hand lifting as if to try warding something away from himself. She was just about to ask what was wrong when his gaze darted up to hers and he shook his head. Colette just couldn't understand why he was hiding the fact that something was wrong with him.

_'Although, aren't I doing the same? I can't really taste my food unless Adam makes it, and I don't seem to be able to eat much of it.'_

In the end, she decided that if Adam was helping her keep her secret, then it was only fair that she helped keep his. Colette reached out to slip her hand into his, hoping he understood that she was going to stay silent about this. After a moment, his face relaxed and he gave her a small but grateful smile. She felt good about that. Clumsy as she could be as a Chosen, she could do at least this much right.

They headed through the city for the Governor-General's office, and Colette noticed how the people seemed to be a bit more afraid, a little more worried. She could hear -and it scared her a bit how much she could hear now- whispers of fears and concerns that the army was away for too long. Her hand was squeezed, just a little, and Colette looked over at the other blonde, growing a bit more concerned herself as Adam flinched again. It was strange; the closer they got to the government building, the more sick he started to look.

"Are you okay? Would it be better if you went to the Skipper's Haven for a while?" she whispered to him. Adam shook his head.

"No. As much as I'd like to leave, if I want to be of any help to you then I must endure any hardship that comes my way." he returned softly, "This is my trial as well."

Colette could understand that, a little. To become a strong Chosen, to become an angel, she would have to undergo trials of the body and soul. But what was Adam trying to do that would have him facing trials, too? Help her, like he said? He did seem to know that she couldn't taste food very well now, so maybe he was sent to comfort her while she underwent her transformation into an angel.

As the party entered the building, Colette shot little glances over to the chef, puzzled as he suddenly paled and swayed on his feet, startled expression on his face. "I don't understand. Why is this building like this?" he mumbled, free hand rising to hide his mouth but she still heard every word.

"Huh? No one's here." Lloyd suddenly remarked and Colette looked around as they emerged into the room they'd been in before, back when they had asked for the Book of Regeneration and she accidentally fell and released her wings, proving she was the real Chosen. It was empty.

But she was hearing voices, faint, but audible. The Governor-General was pleading for something while a stranger counted large numbers, the clinks of metal falling on metal. Colette turned her head, listening carefully to try and figure out where those sounds were coming from.

"Colette?" Adam called her name questioningly and the others turned to look at her as well. She frowned a little in concentration.

"I think I hear voices from... below." she finally decided, looking over at a nearby doorway that led to some stairs going down. The sounds were drifting up from there, so maybe Governor-General Dorr was down there? Lloyd blinked at her, then tilted his own head, face scrunched up as he tried to hear what she was listening to.

"Really?" he finally asked dubiously, "I don't hear anything." Then he focused on something else, confusion on his face. "Are you holding hands, Adam? I thought you didn't like holding hands." he remarked.

Colette blushed and pulled her hand free as the chef stammered, fingers splayed open to try hiding his face. Kratos stepped forward, glowering at them all so both boys would behave. "Since there is no one here, we should investigate the basement." he told them and turned sharply to lead the way down the stairs.

"Yeah, all right. Hey, Adam. Can I hold your hand next?" Lloyd asked Adam with a grin. Colette giggled a little as Adam folded his arms over his chest, scowling.

"No, Lloyd. You're too pushy." he replied and drifted away to stay close to Professor Sage and Genis as they followed Kratos downstairs.

* * *

Seeing Kratos lurking behind a wall of crates was enough to alert Genis that hiding was a good idea. He quickly grabbed Adam's hand and tugged him into the shadows too, next to his sister as they peered out and listened in on what was going on. He could hear Colette and Lloyd joining them as well, trying to keep as quiet as possible.

Looking around Kratos' legs, Genis finally saw what was going on, eyes widening at the sight. A Desian soldier was scratching down something on a clipboard while two more soldiers picked up a chest and walked out of the basement through some kind of tunnel in the back wall of the basement. The Governor-General was standing nearby with his daughter, fretting and rubbing his hands together nervously.

"When will my wife-?" Dorr tripped over his words, choking up on emotion, "When will Clara return to her original form?" The Desian huffed, tapping his pencil against the clipboard.

"Not yet." he returned snidely, nose wrinkled in disgust, "You still haven't paid us enough gald. You've been paying us less and less. I'm not so sure you care enough about your wife if you can't put together the money for payments."

"This is the best I can do!" Dorr exclaimed hysterically, "The tolls, the municipal taxes, the offerings to the Church of Martel; there's nowhere left to squeeze more money from!"

Genis shook in place, outraged by what he was hearing. The Governor-General was paying off Desians?! Why? Why betray the city like that?!

"Well, I suppose this will do for today." the Desian told Dorr in that air of someone who was unwillingly giving another a reprieve, "I'm sure Lord Magnius will remove the demon seed based on your next contribution." With that, the soldier turned and left the basement through the tunnel exit, a door sliding closed behind him and sealing it off from sight. Once all the Desians were well and truly gone, the little girl turned to look up at her father, lip jutting out in a sad pout.

"Father?" she whined, as if all her questions were packed into that one word.

"Don't worry, Kilia. It's just a little while longer." Dorr answered absently, patting the girl on the head without really looking at her, just looking around in that nervous fidget, possibly trying to think of where else to glean more gald from, "Just a little more an-and Clara will be back to normal. I-I'll just raise the fees on the pilgrimages and-"

Genis looked back in time to see Lloyd's face twist in outrage as he stormed out of hiding, demanding to know what the hell was going on. "Ah! Wait, Lloyd!" he called out, trying to grab some part of his friend's clothes and drag him back only to be pulled out into the startled people's view as well, Dorr and Kilia both staring at them in complete shock. The rest of the party followed after them, barring the way to the stairs as they faced the treasonous Governor-General.

"What's the matter? You look like you just saw a ghost." Lloyd suddenly remarked with a smirk on his face. Genis slapped a hand over his face. Really? Did he really say that?

"Ugh. Lloyd, that's a really cliched line." he griped, rolling his eyes when the taller boy just muttered at him to shut up. _'It's like he paints a target on himself for teasing when he does that! I'm just trying to keep him from coming off as an utter moron to everyone!'_

"What are you doing here? Neil! Where's Neil?!" Dorr demanded in a shaky voice, and Genis could see how he was trying to compose himself, trying to take control of the situation. Raine stepped forward, all cool and collected as always, her face betraying nothing.

"I'm afraid Neil's not here." she told the man curtly, "He's looking after the ranch while we come and deal with you." Genis shivered at how cold she sounded, then looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Adam had his head bowed, trembling, while Colette had one of his arms tossed across her shoulders to support his weight. She looked a little panicky, but she was hissing through her teeth, shushing him before Genis could open his mouth and call for help. There was still talking going on, but he only had his attention on how pale the chef was looking.

"I'll be okay. I'll be fine. It's just a little dizziness." Adam told him with a shaky smile.

"...If you want to see my wife..." Dorr suddenly declared in a harsh and ragged voice. Genis turned his gaze over towards the man in alarm, seeing how everyone else had moved to corner the Governor-General near a row of jail cells that served as the building's dungeon. One of the cells had a large square of cloth that covered it over completely. It was this fabric that Dorr was reaching for. "...she's right here!"

It fell away under his grip, and Genis froze in place, horrified by what was before him.

* * *

Lloyd stared in shock at the creature in the cell, hearing a horrified gasp from Kratos just before Genis screamed in fright, probably shrinking against Professor Sage while he wailed about the monster.

"The wrongness in the air! It's from her!" Adam cried out in realization, "She's why I sensed a sick aura from this building, spreading through all of Palmacosta!"

"She's crying... she's crying out in pain... you mustn't call her a monster, Genis!" Colette added sorrowfully, "She's in so much pain...!"

"This is... you don't mean..." Lloyd finally managed to get out, feeling sick to his stomach as he recognized the tall and grotesque humanoid shape. Dorr turned away from the cell, glowering at him in anguish and anger.

"That's right. This is what's become of my wife Clara!" he spat out. Lloyd didn't know what to say, heart sinking into guilt and regret as he continued staring at the transformed woman lurching in the cramped cell.

"So that's why you told everyone she passed away." Professor Sage murmured, her voice soft with horrified understanding. Dorr brought himself up, trying to compose himself in the presence of his transformed wife.

"My father, the previous Governor-General, was a _fool_." he announced in derision, "Because of his defiant stance against the Desians, they killed him, then planted the demon seed in my wife as a warning." He choked a little on the last of his words, blinking back tears. He sniffed a little, holding back his obvious grief before continuing, "If I cooperate with them, they will give me the medicine to save her. It's the only thing I can do for her."

"But... that means you're betraying the people of this city!" Genis cried out from where he clung to Professor Sage's robes. The man lifted his shoulders, then let them drop in an uncaring shrug.

"What do I care?" he retorted bitterly, "We'll never escspe the rule of the Desians anyway."

"If you believe that, then you only defeat yourself and allow such a fate to come to pass." Adam growled in disdain. Lloyd nodded in agreement. Giving up like this wasn't going to help anyone. Dorr had to know that there was hope! The dual swordsman gestured towards Colette, bringing the man's attention to her.

"Colette will-!" Lloyd began to declare before his brain finally kicked the cobwebs clear._'No, no! He'll catch on better when she's called the Chosen!'_ He started again, hoping his quick slip didn't get caught, "The Chosen will save the world!"

To Lloyd's surprise Dorr only gave her an unimpressed sneer before turning it on him. "The Chosen's journey of world regeneration is not absolute. Don't forget the last one ended in _failure_." he practically snarled his words out, harsh and guttural, "You can keep your false hopes, boy. Besides, the people of this city are satisfied with my way. They just don't know I'm working for the Desians."

Listening to the man speaking was getting Lloyd angry. 'False hopes'?! But that was exactly what Dorr was giving and promising the people of Palmacosta! False hope that they were fighting for freedom and life! False hope that their loved ones would be looked after, families protected, and lives spared! And false hope in a man that would sooner sell them away than stand beside them!

"Shut up!" he finally yelled, fists clenching as he struggled to keep from decking the older man, "What do you mean, your 'way'? Just listen to yourself!" Lloyd looked over at the transformed woman still swaying unsteadily in her cell. "I'm sorry about your wife." he murmured in genuine pain at the sight, "I really am. But think of all those people who _believed_ in you, only to be sent off to the ranch!" Lloyd glared back at the Governor-General, a vengeful fury for all those wronged rising in place of pity. "Any of them may have wound up just like your wife! Who gave **you** the right to pick and choose who lives and who suffers?!"

Dorr lashed out angrily, shoving Lloyd back before even Kratos could react. He probably would have stumbled if somebody behind him hadn't reached out to counter-balance the shove. (And wouldn't Kratos be impressed that he actually remembered what that meant?!) "Silence, boy!" the elder man snapped, face red with equal fury, "Stop acting like your justice is absolute! You don't know _anything_ about what I've been through! The _suffering_ I'm going through!"

Oh that was **it**. _'Self-centered, stupid old man!'_ Lloyd stiffened, arms held rigid at his sides as he trembled in barely caged fury. "Where do you get off?" he seethed, oblivious to everything and everyone but the wretched man before him, "Don't even **start** spewing the word, 'justice'!" He swept an arm before himself, as though to knock the very word away from himself. "I _hate_ that word!" So easy to twist around to fit someone's whims, too easy to lose the true meaning, so easy to wrong someone and claim it as 'justice' when it was nothing but stupid, petty bull. "If you wanted to save your wife, you should have resigned your position as Governor-General and searched for a cure, or help, or whatever!" Lloyd yelled while Dorr just sputtered incredulously at him, "But you didn't do **any** of that! You just took the easy way and made everyone _else_ pay for what was your responsibility! You're a worthless jerk who couldn't give up his social standing, even for his own wife!" He jabbed a finger pointedly at Dorr, raising his voice even louder with anger and contempt for the man, "The blame for that is on **your** head, nobody else's!"

There was a muffled grunt of pain behind him, then Colette's voice piped in. "Lloyd, please stop!" she cried, moving to his side and clutching at his sleeve. He spared her a glance, taking in her wide eyes full of pleading and concern. "Not everyone's strong enough to stand against the Desians. Please, stop this!"

And that was all it took to cool him down, seeing her look so worried about him, about Dorr. Lloyd let out his breath in a long, slow sigh. "Colette..." She really was too kind for her own good sometimes. She just smiled a little at him, then looked over her shoulder at someone else before walking up to Dorr. Puzzled, Lloyd followed her gaze to see what or who she was looking at and spotted Adam leaning against a stack of crates near the shadows.

The other boy looked winded, like something had beaten him up when no one was watching. Alarmed, Lloyd shifted, about to move and see what was wrong with his new friend, when Colette's cry of shock pulled his attention back towards her and the Governor-General. The man staggered, one hand pressed to a bloody patch over his side, then collapsed to the floor.

_'Wh-what the hell just happened?!'_ Lloyd stared at the scene in horror and confusion, unable to understand how it went from Colette talking Dorr out of more betrayal to Dorr bleeding out on the basement floor. No one else moved either, too caught up in looking at Clara's suffering or just as shocked at the turn of events as he was.

That was when Lloyd heard the childish laughter.


	17. Boss: Kilia

Tales of Symphonia:  
Wonder Edition

.

.

_"Ahahahahahaha!"_

Adam's eyes widened, his flesh crawling as the sickening sensation of -_wrongness contempt twisted joy pleasure_- washed over him at the sound. Bile rose in his throat, his body attempting to reject the emotions, the taste of them, the taint, and he quickly spat behind the crates to clear his mouth. When he turned back to face the horrific scene, it was to see little Kilia standing over her dying father, psycho-sweet smile on her face as she clutched a wickedly curved dagger in her hand.

"How absurd!" the little girl laughed, directing her contemptuous smirk at the group, "The Goddess Martel would never lend her aid to an inferior human being! The very idea of it makes me laugh!" And she demonstrated so, holding up her hand to her mouth, "Ahahahahaha! Hehehehehe!"

"What are you doing?!" Lloyd yelled in horror, dropping quickly to Dorr's side and pressing his hands against the wound in an effort to stop the bleeding. Genis had his own hands clutching his head, shaking in terror at the turn of events.

"H-how could you **do** that to your own father?!" he wailed.

"It wasn't all Clara that was tainting Palmacosta; _you_ contributed to that as well!" Adam exclaimed, realizing that the blend of negativity he'd been sensing in the city was partially from the woman's suffering and partially from the murderous child, "**You're** the reason why Clara is crying out in pain and fear!"

Kilia rolled her eyes, tossing the dagger away like it was nothing. "Oh, don't be so ridiculous." she declared arrogantly, "Here, I'll show you why that's so." She closed her eyes in concentration, and Adam felt a shift in the air that he couldn't quite figure out. What was that? He couldn't taste it, couldn't _feel_ any emotions tied to it.

The little girl's forehead suddenly split in two places, revealing little horn buds peeking through the skin as the party quickly stepped back, horrified by the sight. Kilia's eyes opened, the cute baby blue replaced with a malevolent rose-red color as she contorted in place, rips in skin and cloth filling the air with a sickening sound, spreading as purple-black flesh and bone tore through to freedom. In seconds, shreds of the little girl known as Kilia lay scattered at her feet, and the chef felt blood drain from his face as he and the rest of the Chosen's group looked upon the oddly skeletal figure now towering a good six feet taller than the tiny girl she'd been.

Pigtails of tawny hair were replaced with twirling horns, and Kilia stood in a hunched position to let her weight balance on her talon-tipped feet and extended arms with clawed hands. She was painfully thin, bony even, and her skin was thin to the point of transparency. Her thin purple-toned lips curved in a smirk.

"I am a servant of Pronyma," Kilia told them in her child-like voice that sounded all wrong coming from that body, "leader of the Five Grand Cardinals who rule over the Desians." She waved one three-fingered hand dismissively, uncaring of the man still bleeding before her. "I was merely assigned to observe the new human cultivation technique, developed by Magnius. There was nothing in my assignment that said to 'fill the air' with whatever you're rambling on about." Her foot reached out to give Dorr a kick, nudging him away from her as she sneered at him, then at Genis. "As for your mistaken belief in my relation to this creature, there's no way a _superior_ half-elf such as I, could have a fool of a father like _this_! Don't you agree?"

Lloyd uttered a sharp curse under his breath that had Adam and Colette both blush in shock. The chef gave the other blonde a quick glance of surprise -her hearing seemed to be just as good, if not better, than his own- before returning to glare at the supposedly 'superior' half-elf.

"A... fool of a father...?" Colette murmured in confusion, looking sadly at the wounded man, then at Kilia, "What do you mean? I don't understand!" Kilia just laughed again.

"Just _look_ at him!" she sneered derisively, "He didn't even notice his own daughter was **dead**, because he was too busy chasing after medicine that doesn't exist in order to save his monster wife!" She bared her teeth in a smile and threw back her head to laugh again, "Hahahahaha! I've been walking around in little Kilia's skin for _months_ and he never once caught on!"

"You...!" Lloyd snarled in fury and Adam echoed the brunet's anger, rushing to join in as the dual swordsman and Genis both launched themselves at Kilia to attack her. He was yanked back by Kratos, shoved against the wall of crates that he'd been using to steady himself earlier.

"Get Dorr to safety first!" the mercenary barked at him and then was off to help Lloyd strike at the creature lashing out at them and Colette with her claws, screaming intelligibly. Adam glared at the frantic battle, wanting to ignore him and join anyway, but saving that man came first. They still needed his information to rescue Chocolat and Dorr couldn't provide that if he was dead.

The chef moved in to gather the Governor-General up in his arms and drag him away from the dangers of being trampled in the frenzy. A spell went off in the midst of the action and he flinched at the debilitating effects of _Acid Rain_ passing over him. That couldn't be any good for the man in his arms either. Adam got them both behind the wall of crates, hoping they wouldn't be knocked over by the fighting, and set the bleeding man down. Dorr stared up at him, eyes glazed by pain and confusion and blood loss, and Adam only glared hatefully back at him.

"You put my childhood friend in danger, because you were a coward." he murmured darkly, "If anything happens to Chocolat..." He stopped, too torn by the negativity in the air and the churning bitter emotions in his own heart to continue, memories surging up and threatening to drown him in the shadows of the past.

"Adam! We need you!" Raine called out forcefully and the chef huffed, shoving his feelings away to deal with later as he drew his frying pan from his pack. Turning on his feet, he darted out to fight Kilia. He needed something to vent on, and a monster half-elf was as good a target as any.

* * *

Raine murmured the incantations for _Dispel_ as quickly as she could, trying to cancel the effects of the _Acid Rain_ that ate at their armors and weakened their muscles. Was it too late to fully neutralize the magic with Adam's help?

It appeared to be so, as the Wonder Chef didn't pull the fork from his back, just raced in to slam the side of his pan against Kilia's knee in order to bring her down, darting around her to keep his speed and get out of the way of Lloyd's _Demon Fang_. _'Nice to see that the training he's been getting with Kratos is serving well.'_ The creature staggered in place from the blow, screaming out in pain and slashing at the air to keep Kratos away when he rushed in to stab her. Raine cringed, her voice failing her and her spell fading when six bone-like appendages suddenly burst from Kilia's back, long scorpion-like tail following suit as it slithered behind her. The appendages were all tipped with spikes, dripping purple blood -or was that venom?- as Kilia rose from the floor in a hovering state, much like Colette.

Were those _wings_?! Some horribly deformed mockery of the Chosen's own mana wings?! Kilia spun in place, tail lashing out, and Raine cried out as it caught her off guard and threw her across the basement to the floor, her little brother calling out her name in a panic. Her left arm burned at the shoulder, her staff held loosely in her grip. She hissed softly through her teeth, reaching over to clutch at her injury and pulling her fingers away quickly when she felt a warm liquid and a stinging pain.

Blood and purple liquid. A wave of dizziness washed over her and Raine decided that it was venom after all. "Ugh, I need to... purify... antidote spell..." she mumbled, trying to gather her thoughts and focus, but the burning and dizziness kept her from doing so.

"Genis! The Professor's down; go give her one of the Antidote bottles!" Lloyd yelled, and Raine turned her gaze on the battle, finding her vision growing hazy as she watched the red-clad boy plant himself in between herself and the creature and hold his swords up in a cross-shape, bubble of mana surrounding him while Kilia beat at it with her hands.

Her view was blocked by her brother as Genis scampered to her and dug into her satchel of supplies, sobbing pitifully as he searched out one of the little glass bottles of green medicine. _'Oh, Genis, I'm so sorry I wasn't paying attention.'_ Raine struggled to sit up and opened her mouth enough to let him pour the contents of the vial down her throat. It tasted horrid, like all medicines tended to do, but she forced herself to swallow while Genis grabbed an Apple Gel and smeared it over the wound in her arm, pinching the sides closed so the candy would stick and fuse them together in the healing. "Thank you, Genis." Raine sighed, hugging him tightly before getting back to her feet carefully. The burning and dizziness quickly vanished, and she frowned as she resumed her spell-casting stance.

_"Oh holy wings, I beg of thee to reveal thy glory! Angel Feathers!"_ Colette called out, her own wings spread and glowing as she unleashed her angel spell. Kilia shrieked in pain and fury, holding up her arms to shield herself as the rings of light struck at her.

"Ah! That's her weakness! Light!" Genis exclaimed, jumping in place excitedly, "Colette! Keep that up!"

"Got it!" the girl agreed and began praying her incantations again.

_"Defend him from the blows of the enemy! Barrier!"_ Raine declared, raising her staff as shielding magic surrounded Lloyd's body, layering on extra protection as his _Guardian _began waning to dangerously low levels. "Lloyd, get away from there before your shield breaks!" she yelled, worry flaring up as she realized that he refused to budge.

"Lloyd! Move away from her!" Kratos threw in, a ferocity in his tone that caught Raine by surprise.

"Now, Colette!" Lloyd shouted. Raine watched as the Chosen unleashed the power of her _Angel Feathers_ once more, the rings flying in to slash at Kilia. She held her breath; would that be enough of a blow to defeat the monstrous thing that had taken the Governor-General's daughter's place?

Kilia screamed in pain from the attack, moving back from the brunet as Kratos and Adam both dashed in to land hits with their respective weapons, possibly to ensure that she went down. "You inferior creatures! Aagh! I'll rip you to pieces for hurting my beautiful wings!" she declared and bent her body, the 'wings' suddenly lashing forward with amazing speed. The mercenary managed to pull up short of being stabbed by the spiked appendages, arms thrown back to hold himself steady at the abrupt halt, and Raine cried out in alarm as all six of them rammed Lloyd.

Though they were deflected by a combination of Lloyd's swords, his _Guardian_ shield and her _Barrier_ spell, the dual swordsman was still thrown backwards by the impact, hitting the floor with a grunt of pain. "Aah!" Adam exclaimed in shock, stopped in place by the rebound of one of the spiked bones puncturing the frying pan he held in his grip. Raine blinked; when had he brought that up to shield himself?

"Adam! Behind you!" she called out in warning when Kilia snarled and lashed her tail out as she yanked her 'wing' back, ripping the pan from his hands. The tail came in from behind, synchronized with her wing retraction, and wrapped itself around the chef's waist, yanking him off his feet as he yelped in shock.

"_You?!_ You're the Wonder Chef!" Kilia screamed in rage, "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"Colette, once more! Hurry!" Raine cried, running in with her staff rising over her head. It went against her better senses; she was a healer, she needed to stay back to safely cast her spells, her defenses were pitiful compared to Lloyd and Kratos and Colette. But that monster had Adam hostage and she was starting to become rather fond of her newest student despite the mysteries surrounding him and so she **had** to do something! As Kilia lifted a hand to grab for Adam's throat, the Wonder Chef screaming in a mix of terror and pain while clawing at the air before himself, Raine lashed her Battle Staff down, slamming it into Kilia's arm and filling the air with the crunch of breaking bone in concert with Colette's cry of _'Angel Feathers!'_.

Kilia wailed in agony, flailing as she buckled under the pain and the assault of the third wave of Light magic, her tail breaking off with the audible snap-sound of her defeat. "Nnnoooo~!" the creature claiming to be a half-elf cried, "Lord Pronyma~...!" She collapsed at the same time Adam hit the floor, and Raine hurriedly threw an arm around the struggling chef, half-carrying and half-dragging him away from Kilia as he clung to her out of strange desperation, gasping for air and shivering violently.

"It's okay, it's all right." she crooned softly, momentarily taken aback with his sudden need to be held that so contradicted his usual aversion to physical contact. She focused on keeping herself calm, making her voice soothing, while she lifted a hand to bring his head closer to her own to touch temples together. It was a comforting tactic she'd used on Genis when he was much younger, to soothe him after bad dreams and during illness. The gesture seemed to have the same effect, as Adam whimpered quietly but began relaxing, his shivering slowly fading.

* * *

Lloyd managed to get to his feet unsteadily as Kilia fell and the Professor dragged a screaming Adam away from the creature. What had just happened? The last few seconds had been a blur of the chef's screams, Professor Sage running at Kilia with her staff held up, and Colette's _Angel Feathers_ flying through his field of vision.

"This can't be...!" Kilia wailed incredulously, her body mangled by the assault of blades and Light magic. Lloyd glared as she turned a hateful gaze on him, dragging herself across the stone floor with her claws, "Fine... then I'll set this monster free... and let it kill you!" Her lips pulled back in a snarl as she lifted a hand up to pick the lock on the cage holding Clara in place, "I hope it rips the Wonder Chef apart slowly, as punishment for his crimes!" And with that Kilia spat out a mouthful of blood and then collapsed, going still in her death.

The prison door opened and Clara staggered out in her monstrous form, still shuddering in unspoken agony as she dragged her feet across the floor towards him and Genis. Memories of facing Marble in the ruins of Iselia flickered in his thoughts as Lloyd looked up at the transformed woman in anguish, his hands torn between moving to the hilts of his swords and staying in place.

"No, not again...!" he whispered, despair rising as Genis whimpered and shook beside him, conflicted just as much as he was, "Do I have to kill another innocent victim? How much more pain do I have to cause before it stops?"

Clara raised one of her enormous arms, ready to lash out at him, when Colette darted forward and held up her hands. "Stop!" she cried out pleadingly to the mutated woman. And to Lloyd's amazement, Clara stopped, like she'd actually heard the cry and regained her senses for a moment. The arm lowered and Lloyd watched in stunned silence as Clara moved around the party and towards the staircase, maneuvering herself up the steps and out of sight. He heard the sound of Kratos sighing in relief, his voice shuddering slightly, and the brunet's brows furrowed a little in confusion. Why did Kratos feel relieved? Had he also faced one of those Desian victims before?

"Ah! W-wait!" Genis called out too late to get Clara's attention, and Lloyd looked down at the little boy, the kid shaking his fists excitedly, "What about Governor-General Dorr?! Is he okay?! Is he still alive?!"

"Oh yeah! We were supposed to talk to him before all this happened!" Lloyd agreed in surprise and looked to the Professor, blinking as he took in the sight of her practically cradling Adam in her arms. He felt a brief flash of irrational anger -how come she could hug him and **he** couldn't?!- before shaking it off. "Professor! We could use your help on this!"

Lloyd hurried over to the cover behind the wall of crates where he'd seen Adam move the other man and knelt down beside the Governor-General. Dorr looked up at him with tired eyes, one hand still pressed against his bleeding side. "Is Kilia safe?" he asked in a frail voice, soft and wispy, like it was taking all his strength to speak. The brunet opened his mouth a little, unsure of what to say as the rest of the party clustered around him. Genis fidgeted with his fingers, guilty expression on his face.

"Kilia is-" he began, but Lloyd moved his arm aside, covering the boy's mouth with his hand as he gave the dying man a faintly encouraging smile.

"Don't worry. It seems your real daughter is fine." he answered smoothly, "The fake Kilia was trying to break your spirit, that's all."

"Lloyd?" Genis looked up at him questioningly, and Lloyd knew it was because he was lying and the boy couldn't understand why he would lie so obviously about something like this.

"I see." Dorr sighed, an odd tone coloring his words as he managed a weak upward twitch of his mouth at the answer. He focused his gaze as best he could on the brunet again. "You... your name is Lloyd?" he asked. Lloyd nodded, swallowing hard.

"Professor Sage! Hurry! Please help him!" He could hear Colette urging the Professor over to use her healing magic. Was she still being held up in hugging Adam?

That brief angry flash came back again, and Lloyd quickly squashed it so it wouldn't appear to the dying Governor-General that he was angry with him. Raine appeared in the next moment, kneeling on the man's other side and holding her staff over him as she murmured softly, the glow of healing magic radiating out from the staff into Dorr's body. Her brow furrowed slightly, then her eyes widened, just a little, then the glow stopped and she stood up, biting her lip as she turned away. Lloyd watched her movements and knew even without her slow shake of her head that she couldn't do anything for the man. She couldn't heal Dorr.

The man was going to die and there was nothing any of them could do.

"Adam's recipes!" Colette whispered and hurried off, disappearing around the wall of crates to ask for the other source of healing they possessed. Lloyd watched her go, then turned back to the Governor-General when he felt the man pressed a small sturdy card into his palm, his fingers shaking from the effort.

"Please, please save Chocolat. That poor girl... she was just used as a tool to lure you out." Dorr pleaded softly, "The passcode is... 3341. That other boy... tell him I'm sorry... for using his friend like that." Lloyd nodded solemnly.

"Got it. Thank you, for helping us." he murmured, glancing over in time to see Colette pull Adam into the circle. The chef looked pale and almost faint, but his eyes widened at the sight, then his mouth pressed into a thin, grim line, looking away as if suddenly ashamed.

"And... I know this is a selfish request, but... if you somehow find a way to save my wife," the Governor-General begged softly, fighting for his breaths now, one hand clutching at his heart, "please, help her return to her human form. When my daughter comes back, I don't want her to be all alone."

Lloyd's Exsphere mount began to itch, but he had already known what his answer would be. So he just smiled comfortingly and nodded. "Okay. I promise." he agreed quietly.

"Thank you..." Dorr whispered, closing his eyes as the stress finally left him, his face relaxing and smoothing out into a tranquil expression at the moment of his death. Lloyd bowed his head in silent respect. He may have been a coward and a jerk, but he was still a father who just wanted to be reassured that his child was going to be all right. And if there was one thing that touched Lloyd deeply, it was the bonds of family, and the pain of losing those bonds was a pain he now shared with the departed man.

There was silence for a moment, and then Kratos's voice broke it. "...Let's get going." he announced, and for a third time an irrational anger flared up in Lloyd, only this time he didn't try to quell it. He stood abruptly and turned on the older man, hands clenched into fists.

"Kratos! How can you just say that?!" he demanded, "Don't you have any respect?! A man just died here! Right in front of us!" The rust-haired swordsman only gazed back at him, one hand lifted as if that would stop him from jumping the guy to beat on, though Lloyd was sure that Kratos would just hand him his ass if he tried.

"Settle down, Lloyd." he replied evenly, "What is it that we must do?" Lloyd's mind went blank as he tried to think through his anger for an answer that wasn't 'Beat the crap out of the stupid mercenary'. Luckily, Professor Sage supplied that answer.

"...Rescue Chocolat, then defeat Magnius, the leader of this region." she replied coolly. Kratos nodded.

"Exactly." he affirmed and Lloyd sighed harshly, rubbing the back of his neck as the adrenaline from battle and the surge of anger both waned away, leaving him feeling exhausted and thoroughly humbled.

"...Yeah, I know." he sighed, "You're right. I'm sorry. I just..." He shook his head. Hell, he didn't even know else to say, or why he was feeling so aggressive. Well, he kinda knew, but at the same time he didn't, and it didn't really make much sense to him so even if he knew what to say or how to say it there wasn't much hope that anyone else would be able to understand.

He looked down at Genis, the small boy slipping his hand into Lloyd's free one, giving it a small squeeze as he looked up with a teary, but determined expression. "Let's go, Lloyd." the boy told him, "Let's defeat the Desians. For Clara and Kilia and Governor-General Dorr, and everyone in Palmacosta." Lloyd nodded and began following Kratos back up the stairs.

He wanted to lie down and sleep, but he couldn't just yet. Not until they were well on the way to the ranch to save Chocolate and avenge the lives that were lost because of Magnius.

* * *

"My healing arts cannot save even one single life?" Raine whispered in dismay, a faintly haunted look on her face. Colette looked up at her, concerned for the words she heard and the appearance of her beloved teacher. They were lingering a bit near the body of the Governor-General, since she insisted on at least performing the last rites for him so his journey to the next world would be blessed and made safe and peaceful. Adam stood by the Professor, looking away with that same pained look on his face as earlier.

"Am I... am I really unfit to learn and use that recipe... like everyone said?" he murmured softly.

"Professor? Adam?" Colette called out to them worriedly, hands over her heart as she turned the puzzling and troubling words over in her own mind, "Is everything all right?" She hadn't meant to hear those words, they'd whispered after all, tried to keep their voices low, but she couldn't help but to hear them. It was growing painful to hear crickets chirping and bells ringing, but she didn't know why that was so or how to make it stop.

The teacher just flashed a quick tight smile at her, Adam adjusting the balance of his travel pack with a dismissive hum. "No, it's nothing, Colette. We should get going." Raine told her, holding out her arm to guide her away from the body, "We'll report this to Neil when we see him so they can properly prepare Dorr for burial." Colette nodded, even though she knew they were hiding their own personal hurts about what had happened. She didn't know if she'd be of any help, beyond just keeping their secrets secret. But if she could do that much, then she would.

As Colette followed Raine and Adam out of the basement and the government building into the plaza, the girl caught sight of Lloyd walking near Kratos and remembered what he'd said to Dorr in his final moments. She hurried forward, her heels clacking against the cobblestone as she caught up to the brunet. "Lloyd?" she called his name, and when Lloyd turned his head to look at her in surprise she pressed on with her question, "Why did you lie to Dorr?"

Because he **had** lied when he said that Kilia was fine. That wasn't true; that monster had killed Kilia long ago and taken her place. It was awful, but to give that man false hope...

Lloyd blinked at her, then faced forward, his expression pensive. "I guess... I felt sorry for him." he finally answered quietly, "I couldn't tell someone about to die that his daughter was no longer alive, you know?" He looked at her uncertainly, as if his answer wasn't what she was looking for. But it made some sense to Colette, now that she knew what he'd been thinking and could think on it herself.

Still, a parent somehow knew how their children were feeling, if they had a strong enough bond. And for Dorr to ask for Kilia's welfare despite his own mortal wounding meant they had that same strong familial bond. So, he should have known in some part that the Kilia who'd followed him around wasn't really her, that his little girl was gone and he had only his illusions of family left.

"...Yes, I know what you mean." Colette agreed slowly, "But I wonder if, maybe, he realized it anyway." Lloyd looked taken aback by her response, head tilting as confusion filled his face.

"What? Then... why would he ask me about her?" he protested, befuddled by the conflicting information. Colette thought on that a bit more, hand resting over her heart.

"I think it's... because he's a father." she murmured, following her earlier thoughts as they began making more sense to her. Lloyd looked at her blankly.

"A father..." he echoed, sounding distant as he focused on that word. Kratos glanced in their direction briefly, then resumed looking forward, as though his interest was only piqued for a moment and then faded. Colette nodded reassuringly, reaching out to twine her fingers with his in a gentle, comforting squeeze.

"There's no parent that doesn't wish for the well-being of their children." she told him with a small smile, "Their children comes first for them, and their love for their children surpasses any hardship and pain. It's powerful and beautiful, don't you think?"

"I wonder if my parents were the same way..." Lloyd's answer startled her until she realized that her dear friend didn't have parents like she did. Didn't have a mother or father, save for his adopted father Dirk. Lloyd smiled at her, genuine but sad, and she drifted away to walk by their teacher, feeling foolish for speaking without thinking of Lloyd's feelings and past first. Colette had lost her mother to illness when she was young, but at least she had her father and grandmother -and possibly her 'other' father-, while Lloyd had no one at all.

Maybe she really wasn't cut out to be a Chosen, but she still had to regenerate the world. Perhaps doing that will make up for her other failings.

* * *

"Parent's love for a child is really amazing, isn't it?" Lloyd murmured softly as he walked beside Kratos. The mercenary quelled a twitch at the sound of the words and looked over at the boy, trying to judge if he should speak or not. Lloyd was turning the keycard he received from Dorr over and over in his hand, a sorrowful expression on his face as he gazed at it.

"So it would seem." Kratos carefully replied. Was the boy looking for comfort? If so, he was seeking it from the wrong man. The Seraph would be anything **but** comforting to the young swordsman. Not with the tangled mess they were in.

Lloyd lifted his head, gazing ahead of himself with a furrowed brow and pensive look that both didn't suit him and did very well. "I wonder if... Mom died protecting me from Desians." he went on as if he hadn't even heard Kratos. The older man just continued watching him, thinking over whether or not he should answer again.

The group was on their way out of Palmacosta again. In another few minutes, they'd be on the road and all focus would be on getting to the human ranch as swiftly as possible. Chances were that Kratos would never have this same opportunity to speak with Lloyd about his past without arousing suspicions later on. Against his better judgment, the swordsman decided to test the waters.

"Do you not remember when or how your mother died?" he asked quietly, already regretting the words. Lloyd only huffed, eyes dark with emotion that Kratos couldn't identify.

"I was only three. I hardly remember anything." the brunet muttered, "I think that's the worst part; I don't even have faces to remember and tell myself 'That's my mom and that's my dad'. It's like there's nothing... and I just came from nowhere." He finally looked up at Kratos and the mercenary internally flinched at the pained expression on the boy's face. "Do you have any idea how that feels? To know you had family, but then not ever really **know** them because they've been gone so long and the only thing left of them is...?" He lifted his left hand to let the Exsphere catch the light and sparkle before letting it drop limply. "Did my father even stand a chance against the Desians? Mom only had the time to tell Dad my name and about the Exsphere, and then she died. I didn't even get to have one more day with her."

Was this punishment for his sins? Was this a slap to the face from whatever posed as Fate? Kratos felt his face grimace slightly as he held a hand up to hide the expression. "I see..." he managed to get out as he struggled to hold his composure. He wanted to hug his son, hold him and tell him he wasn't lost, not like the Seraph was; that he had a family who loved him and wanted him to live freely.

But he couldn't do any of that, couldn't say it. He didn't deserve to reveal himself to Lloyd, not with Cruxis watching over him and so many hardships ahead. If the boy needed something to fight or live for, then it should be for his mother, the woman who could have changed everything had she lived long enough to do so.

He pulled his hand down and looked at the brunet beside him, his face once again a mask of distance and world-weary knowledge. "Then the only thing you can do," Kratos bestowed his piece of wisdom for the day, "is to live your mother's share as well. Live your life as though she were with you... for in your heart, she always will be."

He couldn't help himself; part of his own feelings for his lost wife and estranged son bled into his words, and the wide-eyed expression on Lloyd's face at hearing just that bit of passion troubled him greatly. And then the awe faded, and Lloyd just smiled up at him, small but sympathetic -which meant he still didn't catch on, which both relieved and wounded Kratos in the same breath-.

"...Yeah. I will. Thanks, Kratos." the boy returned softly and the smile grew a little wider, "Maybe you're not so weird after all."

Kratos just lifted his hand to his forehead again. "Thank you for your insightful reevaluation of me." he commented dryly, "Go bother the Wonder Chef for a while. I need to maintain focus on our surroundings." Lloyd nodded, smile swept aside in favor of a deep frown.

"Yeah, there's some questions I need to ask him too." he growled under his breath, slowing his steps so as to let the group pass him. Kratos growled to himself as well. He _really_ didn't like the implications that kept cropping up when it came to his son and the chef. It was only going to hurt Lloyd in the end...


	18. Entering Palmacosta Ranch

Tales of Symphonia:

Wonder Edition

.

.

Genis and Raine both gave him odd looks as Lloyd let them pass him by. He gave them both weak smiles, hoping that would reassure them that everything was okay, even as he wished they could stop somewhere and rest so he could get things straight in his head. But even though he now understood why Dorr did what he did, and Lloyd got the answers about the man that he needed to stay clear in the attack on the Palmacosta Ranch, the encounter only brought new questions to mind. Questions that centered on the little blonde chef trailing behind them all.

"Adam?" Lloyd called out as he fell into step beside the other boy. Adam jolted out of his own deep thoughts and looked up at him in surprise before scowling slightly. Despite the less than welcoming expression he received, Lloyd took it as an opportunity to study his face. Adam wasn't as pale now, so that was good. Maybe he got over whatever had been making him look so sickly? He still had some darkness under his eyes, making the chef look tired. "Next time you start feeling sick, you should say something. Professor Sage could help you feel better with her medicines." the brunet told him firmly, "It's not good to hide it if you think you're coming down with something."

"I wasn't sick." Adam replied coolly, chin lifting in a defiant gesture that looked kind of silly to Lloyd. He almost called it 'cute' in his head before quickly reminding himself that boys didn't like to be called that.

Lloyd shook his head to get rid of the idle thought, then reached out to try bringing Adam's head closer to check his temperature. He blinked when the chef jerked away from him, holding up one hand to block any other tries at getting close.

"Don't touch me!" he snapped, "I'm still angry at you!" And for some reason, that was the last straw for Lloyd.

"Why?! What the hell did I ever do to you to get you so pissed off?!" Lloyd shouted back in frustration, "You know, I'm mad at you too!" Adam stopped walking abruptly, bringing Lloyd to a halt as well. The chef gave him a look of disbelief before narrowing his eyes.

"You? Angry at **me**? Where is your reasoning for that?" he bit back, "You're the one who keeps trying to get into my personal space, with no regard to my repeated statements that I do **not** like to be _touched_!" Lloyd scoffed, throwing his hands in Adam's direction and growing annoyed that the boy stepped back further just to avoid even that bit of closeness.

"That's exactly what I'm talking about!" the dual swordsman declared, "You let Genis touch you; you let Colette touch you; you let Professor Sage _hug_ you! You let everybody **else** touch you for even a little bit!" Lloyd thought back to the government building, to seeing Colette holding his hand and Raine hugging him close to her, heads touching as she murmured softly to him, and flushed in frustration. "But you don't let **me** touch you, and I just want to help you!"

Adam just glared at him, arms folded over himself defensively. "That's it? **That's** what has you so indignant? You were being jealous of something so inane?!" he demanded, "What is your _obsession_ with trying to touch me, or get me acclimated to physical contact?" His eyes narrowed again and Lloyd squirmed under the look, feeling stupid with how Adam put it. The weird way of talking didn't help either. "Have you never considered that I have a perfectly valid reason for **not** wanting to be touched?"

"...Oh, um." Lloyd mumbled, glancing away to escape that glare before thinking on it. Was there really a reason why Adam didn't like to be touched? He'd tried to puzzle that out before and had wondered over it, but didn't get far because Kratos told him to stop bothering about it. He brightened; hey, here was a chance to find out why! "Well then, can you tell me why?" he asked hopefully.

"It is none of your business." Adam replied coldly and walked off, rejoining the rest of group that had stopped to stare at him and Lloyd. Lloyd winced, rubbing the back of his neck as he realized their shouting attracted some unwanted attention. So much for learning anything new. All he did was just confuse himself even more.

.

They camped for the night after making a lot of progress in heading back to the ranch, and Lloyd watched from a short distance away as Adam chatted with Genis, the little elf making their dinner of soup and sandwiches. The other boy looked much better than before, with more color returned to his face and the dark circles nearly faded. Lloyd never did find out why he looked so beat up in that basement. What had happened? He never got the answers, too hung up on his apparent jealousy.

It wasn't fair, that's all. It was Lloyd's idea to help Adam get over that 'not liking touch' thing, so why was it that everyone else was good but Lloyd himself was 'bad'?

He sighed and went back to twisting gold wire into a twirling pattern that would become part of the new heart-shaped pendant for Colette's necklace. What would it take to get back that companionship from earlier? When he first met the Wonder Chef and they traveled and fought side by side and were friendly with one another? Why had Adam suddenly become...?

Lloyd jolted as he recalled something that Dorr had told him; a dying message to give to Adam. That could give him something else to talk about with the other boy and a chance to try rebuilding their companionship!

With that hope, Lloyd tossed the pendant and his tools aside and got to his feet, rushing over to the cooking fire. "Come here! I have to tell you something!" he blurted out, grabbing Adam by the wrist and pulling him up and along before the chef could react.

"Wha-? What are you doing?!" Adam protested in irritation, "I told you I don't want you touching me! Where are you taking me?! Stop!" Lloyd could feel him struggling to pry his hand off and ignored Genis and the Professor's calls of his name, their demands to know what he was doing. He continued walking purposely until he was at the very edge of the camp, where the firelight was weakest, then turned to face the chef. Adam squinted in the dim shadows, turning his head slowly from side to side, like he was having trouble seeing. Lloyd blinked, confused by the action.

Sure it was a little dark, but he could still see somewhat okay. Why was Adam having trouble? "I just need to talk to you-" Lloyd began.

"I'm not telling you why I don't like being touched!" Adam interrupted, snapping his head up -and for a moment, Lloyd thought the other boy had his eyes closed completely- to glare at him again.

"No, it's not about that, I swear!" Lloyd explained hurriedly, and even let go of his wrist to hold up his hands as a peace offering, "See? I let go; I'm not touching you." He felt a bit disappointed by that actually, letting him go. "Like you wanted; I'm not touching. I just needed to get you alone to tell you something."

The blonde frowned a little, rubbing lightly at his wrist. "A-All right. What is it?" he asked. Lloyd rubbed at the back of his neck, feeling a little awkward by the setting.

"It's about Dorr." he began, blinking at the soft growl of disapproval from Adam, "Before he died, he told me to tell you that he was sorry, for putting Chocolat in danger." The chef looked up at him abruptly, eyes distant and brow furrowing as a confused expression came over him.

"He said what?" Adam questioned in disbelief, "He said he was 'sorry'? That's all?" He bared his teeth angrily, growling again. "He sent my childhood friend into a human ranch, where she could possibly be dead or turned into one of those monster things, and all he could say was _'I'm sorry'_?! To **me**?!" he demanded, "And what? Did Dorr think that would make things all right with me? That I would forgive him after his death for what he did? Not 'I should never have done so', not 'I'm sorry for endangering your daughter, Cacao', it's just plain 'I'm sorry'?!"

Lloyd backed up a step, alarmed by how Adam just seemed to get even angrier, face turning red at the cheeks, shoulders shaking. He lifted a hand without thinking, a reflexive attempt to ward off or block anything that could be thrown at him. "A-Adam, what's wrong?" he exclaimed, confused and a little frightened by the response. Considering how guilty the chef had looked when he saw Dorr dying in the basement, Lloyd thought hearing the apology would be some kind of relief for him.

"No, I'm not forgiving him!" Adam snapped, shaking his head fiercely as tears welled in his eyes and spilled onto his cheeks, "He's only sorry we caught onto his plotting; I will not accept _any_ form of apology until I can bring Chocolat home to her mother, safe and sound! And we would have her already if **you** hadn't decided to come back to see that man!"

And in that moment, Lloyd realized at last why Adam was so mad at him. He had decided to return to Palmacosta rather than attack the ranch immediately, and he had even stopped Adam from doing it on his own. Ever since then, the other boy had been cold and bitter towards him. "Is that... is that why you don't want **me** to touch you?" he asked softly, eyes wide with understanding and hurt, "Because I didn't choose to attack the ranch right away?" Lloyd reached out towards the other boy, only remembering at the last moment not to touch and jerking his hand back. "Adam, I made what I thought was the best choice at the time! I'm sorry if you thought it was wrong, but if you were feeling sick and I couldn't keep my head clear, then rushing right in would just get us all killed!"

"But if too much time has passed... if Magnius believes that we haven't fallen for the trap and will come... then Chocolat could be...!" Adam protested brokenly, squeezing his eyes shut and clutching at his head, soft sobs escaping him as tears flowed freely down his cheeks.

Lloyd just stood there for a moment, uncertain of what to do. His friend was crying, but a comforting hug wasn't going to help. It'd be the last thing in the world that the chef would want from him right now. But if Adam went into the ranch with them while still torn up like this, there was no way he'd be able to stay safe long enough to rescue Chocolat like he wanted. The brunet absently moved his hand to rub at the itch around his Exsphere mount, trying to figure out what he should do.

Should he try to give Adam some kind of hug or gesture even though the guy was currently pissed off at him, or should he stay away like Adam wanted?

"Ch-Chocolat..." the chef mumbled in anguish and Lloyd just couldn't take hearing that kind of lost and hopeless tone in anyone. He didn't want to hear it from Kratos and he definitely didn't want to hear it from Adam. He reached out quickly, grabbing the other boy by the shoulders and pulling him close enough to let him bump their foreheads together, startling the blonde out of his sobbing. Then he willed the chef to understand what he was trying to do.

_'This isn't about me trying to get you used to touch right now! This is about me showing you the only way I know works that we have to stay calm, stay clear, and __**trust **__that we can save her together!'_ Lloyd thought fiercely, squeezing his eyes shut as he hoped that he wouldn't be smacked upside the head with that broken frying pan for this. "Pull yourself together, Adam!" he exclaimed, feeling the other boy stiffen under his grip, "I know you're mad at Dorr and at me, and it's okay to be mad, but we can't save Chocolat if you're so mad you won't accept my help when you need it, or you're caught up feeling guilty or whatever!"

"No...! Let go...!" The protest was weak, as was the lame attempt at struggling away from him.

"Just please understand what I'm trying to do! I want to help, I want to save Chocolat for you and for her mom, but I can't do it by myself and you can't either." Lloyd pressed on, wishing he could just push what he was trying to say and feel straight into the Wonder Chef's head. Surprisingly, Adam was actually calming down, or at least going still, not trying to yank himself loose. "We have to be able to count on each other in the fighting and we can't do that if you're pissed off at me the whole time." Lloyd took the soft whimpering as a sign that Adam was listening, really listening. "I'm not a book smart kind of guy, I know that. But I know I can't fight if my head's not in it, and I couldn't when I didn't know Dorr's side of this mess, and now I can't when I'm too worried about you being all messed up because of Chocolat."

Calm, determined, a real desire to help; these things that Lloyd could right away feel sure of he held onto for as long as he could, wishing he could fully explain what he wanted to say. "I need your help in this, like I know I'll need Colette's help, and Kratos's, and Genis and Professor Sage's help." he urged, eyes still shut tight, "So please, help me, and be mad at me all you want _after_ we save Chocolat!"

There was silence for a while after that, and Lloyd found himself actually afraid to open his eyes, until- "All right."

He opened them, surprised, and found himself staring straight at Adam's own blue eyes, the other boy looking up at him tiredly, the faintest hint of a smile turning the corners of his mouth up. "You're right, amazingly enough." the chef murmured, "The ingredients of a recipe can't work well together until you blend and mix them, and they won't mix if they are kept separate for needless reasons. Part of me already knew that you made the right choice when you made it, but I was just too angry and afraid to accept it then." Adam closed his eyes and tilted his head a little, maintaining the contact of foreheads between them and looking like he was listening to something again. "I accept your apology, because I feel you really mean it and want to act to change the outcome of this, to make amends." he added softly, "Thank you, and I will help you all I can." He opened his eyes again and smiled a little more, "I should also apologize, for taking out my anger on you when you truly want to do what's best. It's something I'm learning to see in you; something I'm not used to seeing in others."

"Heheheheh... uh, thanks. I think. I'm not sure what you said, but we're friends again, right?" Lloyd asked nervously. The chef lifted an eyebrow, grinning weakly at him.

"Lloyd, just because I get mad at you, it doesn't mean we stop being... friends." Adam replied, "I value my friends greatly, far too much to just end a friendship in the heat of a moment." He closed his eyes again, making that listening expression again before pulling his forehead back and looking up at the brunet with a wry smile. "But I think we should head back to camp now. I doubt either of us will be able to stay awake much longer." he added.

Lloyd smiled back, relieved to find that his friendship hadn't been in danger at all, and then caught on to what Adam meant when he felt his exhaustion catch up to him again. "Hngh!" he grunted, wincing as he felt a little weak at the knees, his grip on Adam's shoulder tightening a bit as he tried to steady himself. The chef flinched but didn't raise his own hands from his sides -and when had they fallen from his head anyway?-, just endured the pain until Lloyd was sure he could walk without falling on his face. "Good idea. Bed sounds good about now." he muttered and staggered on ahead, pulling Adam along by the cuff of his sleeve this time.

He figured the chef would probably appreciate that more than actually grabbing his wrist again. From the sound of the faint chuckle behind him, Lloyd guessed he was right about that.

* * *

They made record time getting back to the branch of the main road that would take them to the Palmacosta Ranch. A few merchants hurrying out of the region so as not to be caught up in the perceived war gave the group short rides in their wagons and caravans, eating up the distance in a much faster time than if they'd walked the entire way. Kratos still pulled Lloyd aside for training during the evenings the wagons were stopped, and while Adam couldn't participate with a broken frying pan, the mercenary made sure he at least maintained his dashing speed.

This was done by having Lloyd chase the Wonder Chef around in an attempt to learn to strike moving targets.

"I don't remember agreeing to this!" Adam yelled in alarm, leaping back and then cartwheeling aside to dodge Lloyd's wooden blades as they tore through the air right where he had been moments ago. Kratos frowned dismissively at the complaint. As far as he decided, _this_ was only the beginning of the kind of training Lloyd had volunteered them both into.

"Keep running, Adam! He's catching up!" Genis called out from his seat on his blanket. Kratos spared the boy a glance, just to make sure whatever he was making for dinner didn't have any of those vile red fruits. Colette was giggling behind her hands, and Raine alternated between watching the training match and writing in her notebook.

"Stop flipping around, man! Desians don't move like that!" Lloyd protested in frustration, moving his gaze to follow the other boy as he sailed overhead after bouncing off a nearby tree trunk.

Riding with the merchants also allowed them the opportunity to restock their supply of Gels and food. Kratos encouraged the children into this by glowering when one of Lloyd's attempts to strike at the Wonder Chef actually connected, opening a gash along the blonde's upper arm, and his idiot son immediately scrambled to use up the last two Apple Gels healing the injury. It hadn't been a complete heal either, which helped the Seraph's silent argument as he dragged Lloyd over to a merchant to begin negotiations for fresh supplies while Adam sulked nearby, bandage wrapped around his arm and half-eaten apple in hand. Now fully prepared with fresh supplies and mended armors, the group parted ways with the last merchant caravan and headed into the forest where the Palmacosta Ranch was hidden.

Kratos did not like any of this. He didn't like how he was essentially leading his son and the young Wonder Chef into what amounted as a massive trap. He'd spent an hour or so making sure Lloyd knew for certain that what he was aiming to do wasn't just defeating an enemy, but taking the life of another living being. The Seraph wanted this lesson well-heeded in the hopes of circumventing the chance that Lloyd may turn out like...

He immediately turned himself away from that line of thinking, ignoring the sudden concern his son had for his abrupt silence. The sins of his guilt for what happened in the past were too much to hold back from his voice. Last thing he needed would be for that to leak into his tone and for Lloyd to catch on to it. The boy had an unusual perceptiveness when it came to random things and Kratos did not want to risk the tone of his voice falling into that category.

The leaves rustled and Kratos paused, listening for the familiar footsteps of the Assistant Governor-General. The group stopped as well, looking at the man with varying degrees of guilt and sadness on their faces. Neil stood before them and sighed, resigned understanding in his expression.

"You don't have to say anything. From the looks on your faces, I can imagine what has happened to Dorr." he murmured and shook his head, "Somehow, it doesn't shock me as much as I had expected it would."

"Oh, but Dorr **did** say this: He wants us to save Chocolat." Colette blurted out, her face lit up with tearful determination. Neil gave her a weak smile and nodded.

"...I understand. A change of heart..." he murmured and straightened himself up, blinking away tears, "Then please, take me along to carry out the Governor-General's last wish."

"All right." Lloyd agreed and the man moved to join the group, taking up a place near the Wonder Chef.

Kratos had watched Neil's movements and found himself glad for doing so, as this gave him the chance to notice that boy seemed to be struggling with something. His face had lost color again and he flinched at the oddest moments, but he still managed to stay on his feet with only the tiniest swaying motion to give him away. The Seraph frowned, suspicious of the behavior. What was going on now?

* * *

"At any rate, let's see if we can find a place to use that key we received from Dorr." Raine suggested. Lloyd blinked, as though rousing himself from a daydream, and delved into his pockets, pulling out the keycard to study. Neil walked forward and pointed to the right of the path.

"The Palmacosta military is fighting on that front, diverting a majority of the Desian troops to the front gate in a paced assault." he told them and pointed towards the leftmost path, "Our scouts reported seeing a back entrance over that way, but there was some kind of machine next to the door and the door itself didn't have any way of opening it."

"That's probably where this goes." Lloyd remarked, holding up the keycard between two fingers and flicking it as he once again took lead position and headed down the left path. Raine pursed her lips together and followed. Considering what they'd gone through to get that card, one would think he'd treat it more carefully.

As they approached the rear entrance to the ranch, Raine took the time to look over the more vulnerable children, Genis, Colette, and Adam. She had spent some time soothing her brother and helping him cope with the violent attack that ended Dorr's life. Seeing him still shivering days later, she knew that event would haunt for far longer. She reached out, closed her hand over his, and offered a comforting smile. Genis looked up at her in surprise, then returned the smile, looking more assured by the gesture.

Colette was murmuring soft prayers, asking for protection and blessings in the rescue of Chocolat. She met Raine's gaze as they walked carefully through the underbrush of the trail and offered a bright smile of her own, something small to bolster her spirits. The girl didn't even miss a beat in her prayers.

Adam had removed his cape and toque and packed them in his bag, holding his fork down to hide the metal tines and keep it from catching stray light. Raine studied him a bit more intently. He'd been looking sickly for a lengthy stretch of time now, but he always brushed off concerns about his health. For a short time he appeared to be recovering color and energy, but now it seemed as if that illness had only been in remission and had returned. He was pallid but focused, like he was ignoring the state of his health in favor of rescuing his childhood friend. Not the best idea, but in the current circumstances there was little else they could do.

"Hey, is this the machine you were talking about?" Lloyd asked suddenly, bring Raine's attention back to the task at hand. The brunet had run up to a device of some kind, adorned with some brightly lit displays. Neil nodded and Raine stepped forward to examine the machine herself.

It was amazingly advanced, all smooth metal and cool to the touch, humming like a well fed animal. She studied the buttons, then the displays, mouthing out the familiar elven words that scrolled along, tiny ants of light on the hovering display. This was a card reader, used to ensure that only authorized personnel could access the door nearby. "Ah, I see. Lloyd, give me that card." Raine instructed. He handed it to her, head tilted and puzzled expression on his face. She stuck the card into the corresponding slot and watched as the screen shifted to show an empty box and a blinking vertical line within it. "It must want the passcode to confirm the validity of this keycard." she murmured, "Lloyd, what was the code Dorr gave you?"

"3341." Lloyd recalled and Raine pressed the buttons that were marked with the numbers in sequence, looking up often to be sure they appeared in the box correctly. Once the final number was entered, the box closed, the machine beeped, the door clicked and the card slot spat the keycard back out. "Hey, it opened! Great work, Professor!" Lloyd cheered, snatching up the card and pocketing it as he raced over to push the door open. Exasperated, Raine prepared to scold him but held her tongue when the door simply slid to one side to grant them entry. What a strange way of opening. The brunet cautiously peered inside, looking around before turning to face the group. "It looks clear. Let's go find Chocolat."

They made their way into the base and lingered a bit near the door, gazing around with suspicious looks. The walls were smooth metal, impassive in appearance, and Raine had the uncomfortable sensation of them looming over her, waiting to crush her. She gave Genis the barest of touches and he clung close to her side, almost buried in the folds and layers of her robe and tunic, hiding a whimper in the fabric. Lloyd looked around a bit more, frowning at an obvious dead end before turning his attention to the light falling from the other end.

"Let's hurry up and take care of this. The less time spent here, the better." he muttered. Genis nodded, a faint grimace on his face.

"Yeah, I don't want to stay here very long. It's creepy." he agreed and took timid steps as Raine began following Lloyd and Kratos's lead.

"I have to agree. Being inside a Desian facility is not a pleasant experience." she added. The building seemed to be dark with cruelty, tainted with the tales of morbid happenings both real and imagined. And the fact the people running it were of the same race as... She shook her head, firmly dismissing that thought. They were not the same, she and Genis; they could never become as monstrous as the Desians, no matter how wounded their hearts would be, living in secrecy and fear.

"Boy, come along. There's nothing there, can't you see?" Neil whispered. Raine glanced back to see who he was talking to and raised an eyebrow when Adam hurried to join them from the dead end, clasping something small in his free hand against his chest. His face still lacked color, the darkness beneath his eyes a bit more pronounced, and he flinched away from the walls, but otherwise he seemed aware enough to travel through the ranch. What really intrigued her was the item he was hiding from view. What was it and why was he hiding it?


End file.
